Pathways
by Morijun
Summary: He kidnapped her per Orochimaru's orders. Now he was posing as her sibling. Sasuke wasn't quite sure what happened in between, but he rather thought it involved blood and his psychotic ex-brother. SasuHina.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** Naruto isn't mine.

**Summary:  
**He was her captor. Yet it felt like it was the other way around. She was dangerous and distracting, and he couldn't afford to be distracted. Now with that damned Blood Synthesis affecting them both, Sasuke didn't know what to think anymore.

She just wanted to become stronger, to not be weak. And when he kidnapped her, she thought that all was over. But then she didn't expect him to be like this. She didn't expect him to be like anything, really. It seemed like there was more to Sasuke Uchiha than he let on.

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* * *

**Pathways  
**Prologue

* * *

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Sasuke's eyes widened when he saw Itachi take on three Uchiha ninjas from the Military Police corps. From behind the shelter of the shoji, he could see all three sprawled on the dirt and Itachi hovering over them.

"You thought too highly of the size of your 'containers' and underestimated mine," Itachi stated monotonously at the three Military Policemen. "And now you are on your hands and knees on the ground."

Sasuke can't understand what's happening. What are they all talking about? What did he meant by 'container'? His brother…he'd never seen him like he was now.

The eldest of the three, Uchiha Yashiro was the one to speak. "Shisui had been watching you. Shortly after joining the Anbu, your actions started to become strange…so strange that we cannot ignore it. What are you thinking, Itachi?"

"Attachment to the organization…attachment to the clan," Itachi spat out, "why 'attach' at all?"

Sasuke stared at his brother's back. He didn't know what got to Itachi but whatever it is…it sounded very uncharacteristic of his brother.

Itachi continued speaking. "It is merely a disgusting action of restraining yourself and limiting your own 'container'. And now I finally understand it. You people dread and detest those you can't comprehend…how foolish."

"Stop it now, Itachi!" Sasuke recognized the voice as belonging to their father. "What is wrong with you, boy?"

"Nothing is wrong." Itachi said nonchalantly. "I'm just doing what needs to be done. That's all."

"If that is true, why didn't you come last night?" So…his brother didn't really come to the meeting. Sasuke had thought that they were just waiting to catch Itachi in a lie. But now coming from their father…

"To get closer to the top." Itachi replied.

"What are you talking about?" Even though Sasuke couldn't see their father's expression, he could tell by the sound of his voice that he was angry. Angry at Itachi.

Instead of replying, Sasuke saw Itachi draw a kunai and throw it at the Uchiha crest on the side wall. The fan depicted on the wall cracked. "My 'container' has given up all faith on this useless clan."

Sasuke couldn't believe it was his brother talking…it's as if a monster had invaded his Nii-san overnight and was the one talking-back to their father. How? How could his brother think that, after all the things he'd said about being the protectors of Konoha? The brother he knew was proud of their clan symbol…Sasuke looked at the cracked Uchiha crest Itachi had thrown a kunai at…This person couldn't be his brother…could it?

"Because of this pathetic 'attachment' to a clan, people lose sight of what's truly important." Sasuke's attention was drawn back to Itachi. "A real change can't take place when restraints and controls take over…where imagination and instinct are suppressed."

Sasuke didn't want to hear anymore, but he found himself unable to shut-out the sound of his brother's voice. What was he saying? Is everything his Nii-san thought him about having pride on their clan, all a lie?

Sasuke came out of his hiding place behind the shoji and saw their father helping the elder Uchiha. "Stop this talk of nonsense now or we'll be forced to put you in prison!" Yashiro shouted.

"So what's it gonna be? We will not threaten you anymore." Uchiha Inabi asked Itachi. "Captain," he said addressing Fugaku, "give us the order to restrain him!"

No! Sasuke couldn't let them put his older brother in jail! "Nii-san, stop it already!" he shouted desperately.

Itachi seemed to wake up from his rebellious daze upon hearing Sasuke's voice. He immediately bowed on the ground. "I didn't kill Shisui. And I apologize for all that I have said."

Sasuke sighed in relief and stood there watching his brother as his father went passed the two of them on his way to enter the house. When his brother turned and looked at their father's retreating back, Sasuke saw something very different on his brother's eyes.

Sasuke didn't know then, that he will come to curse those eyes with every bit of strength in his soul…those eyes that will haunt him in his dreams and waking hours...

Very soon.

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* * *

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Hinata heard about what had happened. The whole village was talking about it, so it was impossible to miss.

She had been wondering why she often saw the Hokage pass by her mother's room. Now she knew that he was visiting the sole survivor of the Uchiha clan, Sasuke.

Him being confined in a hospital would also explain why he had been absent in classes for three days in a row.

Hinata knew him as the smartest student in their class at the academy. He mostly kept to himself but would always help other students who were having difficulty with the lessons. She remembered one time, during shuriken throwing lessons, that he had given her a tip on how to hit her target better when he saw that she was having trouble at perfecting her aim. She had been too shy to thank him back then but he didn't seem to notice and probably, with all that has happened to him, her missing 'thank you' would be the farthest thing in his mind.

Hinata doubted that he even remembered about it.

Rain clouds dotted the afternoon sky outside the window but Hinata knew that it would be another day before the rain finally falls. The weather had been like that for over two days, black clouds gathering overhead but never raining, just making the day seem dark and dreary.

It suited her fine; she loved the rain. The cold breeze it brought always made her and her sister want to cuddle next to their mother while the three of them drank hot chocolate on their futon. Her father would always disapprove of it but her mother would tease him, calling him a spoil-sport, until he finally relented to letting them do what they want. Hinata also knew that for all the show he was putting at being tough, he had a soft spot for her mother. 'Sure his feathers would be ruffled a little bit, but he'll get over it'…that's what her mother would constantly say.

Her mother, she could always bring a smile on their father's lips without fail.

Hinata glanced at her father, sitting on a chair next to her mother, his face very grim. She could only wish her mother could make him smile now.

But Hinata knew that she can't…not when she couldn't even open her eyes to look at him…at them. She had been like that for over a week now. Sleeping…never showing signs of waking up anytime soon.

She had once asked what was happening to their mother but their father only made the frown he was constantly wearing, since their mother became sick, much deeper.

Hinata didn't try asking again after that.

However…she knew that the life was slowly slipping from their beloved mother. How could she not? Every day, they watched the color slowly drain from her face. And they couldn't do anything about it.

At her tender age, she was forced to understand that people couldn't live forever…that they would eventually meet Kami-sama.

"Hinata," her father's voice broke her from her thoughts, "go home now, it's getting dark." He gestured for their nanny, Kaoru, to wake Hanabi who had been sleeping the entire time they were at the hospital. Hinata would rather stay awake herself and keep watch over their mother but she could also understand Hanabi. Her sister's barely three years old after all.

"Otou-sama…w-what about Okaa-sama?" Hinata didn't like the idea of leaving their mother's side.

"Go." Their father ordered firmly. "I'll stay here and keep watch over her. Kaoru-san, please take them home."

Kaoru bowed in acknowledgement and gently ushered Hinata and Hanabi out of the room. Before their nanny closed the door, Hinata chanced a last look on their mother sleeping on the bed.

That was the last time Hinata had seen their mother alive.

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* * *

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"Obaa-san," Hinata addressed the elder woman as she tucked her to bed later that night, "Okaa-sama will go to heaven, right?"

Kaoru's a member of the Hyuuga family's Cadet Branch. A gentle and kind soul, she was the one who helped their mother raise Hinata and her sister. "Why would you ask that child?" The old lady said as she brushed the hair away from Hinata's face.

"Okaa-sama once told me, that good people go to heaven when they die." Hinata sat up. "Okaa-sama is a good person, so she'll go to heaven right?"

Kaoru smiled sadly and hugged Hinata's small frame. Although she was a barren, making her a good candidate to be a nanny, she thought of Hinata's mother as her own. So when Hinata and Hanabi were born, she thought of them as her grandchildren.

"Of course, my child…of course." She hugged Hinata tighter. "But your mother won't die. She'll be healthy again soon." Kaoru comforted the young girl, although she knew that what she said was far from the truth.

Hinata hugged the woman back. "I'm scared Obaa-san." She too, knew that what Kaoru said was a lie. "I don't want Okaa-sama to die. Otou-sama would be terribly upset if she did."

Kaoru knew how much Hinata loved her parents, even if her father made her stutter and made her nervous. With Hinata, it was easy to know whom she was comfortable to be with. She stutters when a person made her uneasy. That's why Kaoru knew that Hinata doesn't feel uncomfortable with her.

The child never stutters when the two of them talk.

"She'll be fine, you'll see when we come visit her tomorrow." Kaoru patted Hinata's raven hair and tucked the covers around her. "That is why you need to sleep now so we can go very early to the hospital." The old lady switched off the light, letting the room be enveloped in darkness.

"Good night, Obaa-san." Hinata whispered.

"Good night, Hinata-chan." Kaoru replied, gently closing the shoji behind her.

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* * *

.

The walk to the hospital the next day was pretty uneventful. It was just the two of them, Kaoru and Hinata; Hanabi remained at the house because the younger girl was still sleeping when they left early that morning, so they decided to come back for her later that afternoon.

Hinata looked up at the sky and smiled at the dark clouds overhead. The rain would be on its way shortly, she could tell.

"You look happy, Hinata-chan." Kaoru observed with a slight smile.

Hinata nodded cheerfully. "It's going to rain soon," she raised the basket of goodies she was holding, "and I've brought Okaa-sama's favorite chocolate drink. I'm going to prepare it for her when we get at the hospital."

Kaoru bobbed her head. "Ah, yes. Your mother loves drinking hot chocolate on a rainy day." The kind nanny inclined her head questioningly at Hinata's basket. "Oh, but what's that? Surely, that lollipop isn't for your mother, is it?" Kaoru said, gesturing to the round, swirly candy poking out of the basket's rim.

Hinata smiled. "It's for my classmate! He's also at the hospital and I'll come visit him too after I've prepared Okaa-sama's hot chocolate."

Kaoru nodded her head and offered to carry it for Hinata. "I'll carry it, Obaa-san." Hinata assured her, knowing that Kaoru isn't as strong as she used to be.

After that exchange, the two silently continued on their trek.

Upon reaching the hospital, they immediately proceeded to the room where Hinata's mother stayed. On the way to the room, a few medic nins rushed passed them in a hurry. Hinata saw them going to the same direction where her mother was.

A sinking feeling started in the pit of her stomach. "Okaa-sama…!" Hinata cried and ran as fast as her young legs would carry her. Ignoring Kaoru's calls.

_Okaa-sama…please not yet!_

She stopped in front of the doorway. Her father was hunched over the bed, his shoulders shaking in silent sobs. The medic-nins were on the process of placing a white sheet over her mother.

Time seemed to stop as the white material descended and covered her mother's face. To Hinata, she only appeared to be sleeping. Her mind worked in a fast speed, memorizing her mother's face…every detail and every contour…when her mother's image was finally etched permanently in her memory, time went back on track…

And it was faster than when it stopped.

"Okaa-sama!" She cried, dropping the basket she had been holding.

.

* * *

.

His feet pounded the pavement as he run aimlessly. The bodies of his relatives, his family, littered the place. Their eyes were opened and their faces held an expression of shock, as if they couldn't believe what was happening before they were killed.

There was a lot of blood. There was Itachi.

Sasuke's eyes snapped open. He gasped. _A dream…?_

He started to sit up but the pain in his right arm stopped his attempts. "Oh no…" he whispered, remembering the similar pain he felt when Itachi's thrown kunai grazed his arm.

"So…" _…it's not a dream after all._ Sasuke ignored the pain shooting up his arm and shakily attempted to sit up once again.

_Foolish brother… _

After successfully being able to sit up, he slowly placed his feet on the cold floor, taking note as he did so, that he was in a hospital, judging from the rows of empty beds next to the one he was currently on.

His feet protested against the cold tiles but Sasuke paid no mind to it and proceeded to make his way to the door, leading out of the room.

"He's the only survivor…poor boy…" Sasuke heard one nurse say as he opened the door.

_Live on in shame…_

"Didn't he have an older brother?" Sasuke flinched upon hearing this.

"Supposedly, but his whereabouts are unknown."

"I can't believe the illustrious Uchiha clan would fall over night. Imagine what that boy would be feeling now." Sasuke knew that that particular sentence was aimed at him. "Poor boy…" He didn't want their pity. _I need to get out of here…_

_Run and run…_

He heard the voice of Itachi goading him as he made his way to his clan's side of the village. By the time he had arrived at the entrance to the Uchiha compound, it was already raining in sheets. But he didn't let the pouring droplets of water stop him and he continued to run blindly, only stopping for a second when he saw hazard signs closing off the entrance. He went in anyway.

_Cling to life…_

Sasuke continued running until he came to the river where he practiced his first ever Katon technique…where his father… _Just as I expected from a son of mine…_

Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut and balled his hands to a fist. "They're all gone…" he murmured in a disbelieving manner, as if he was reminding himself but finding it hard to believe himself. "Otou-san…Okaa-san…"

_Blame me…_

"Itachi…" Sasuke growled out from tightly clenched teeth. His brother who he admired and envied all at the same time…the one responsible for the pain he was feeling now. "Why...?" He whispered quietly. But he knew the answer to that. Itachi had told him the reason of it all.

To test his 'container'.

It made no sense to Sasuke's young mind…who only knew of happiness, until now. To kill their family for a stupid 'container', just to test strength…it sounded very shallow.

And selfish, even for his brother.

The rain was making numerous ripples on the surface of the river but Sasuke could still make out his distorted reflection on the water. He could still make out the tears reflected in the water welling up in his eyes but never falling. He found that he can't make them fall anymore.

Slowly, like in a dream, he watched his reflection morph into the image of his brother. The face of Itachi seemingly taunted him, daring him to get revenge.

_Kill me…_

Sasuke's face contorted in anger. "Yes, I will kill you!" He shouted and lunged at the image, forgetting that it was only a mere reflection created by his imagination.

A bubble of air escaped from his mouth when he gasped from the coldness. Strangely though, his body welcomed the numbing sensation it brought. It made him forget the pain and sadness he was feeling in his chest, if only for a moment.

There, enveloped by the darkness, Sasuke made a vow to himself. He would become an Avenger. He will seek retribution for his clan…for his father and mother. For himself.

He swears it on his tears that refused to flow. Tears of sorrow…

He will kill Itachi but until then…

_Hate me…_

This will be the start of his suffering. Until blood would have been split, he will never shed a single tear. Until tears of sorrow turn into tears of happiness…

Never will they flow.

He will obtain the Mangekyou Sharingan…and then…

_One day, come before me with the same eyes I bear now._

_._

* * *

_._

It rained that day.

The cold breeze that used to comfort her before felt cruel on her skin. The water droplets that soothed her with their pitter-patter on the rooftop were now an annoyance for her.

She had no one to enjoy the cold breeze with…No one to cuddle with while listening to the droplets as they fell from the sky.

Everything was silent around her, only the sound of the rain could be heard. It drowned out her cries and her father's, whom she had only seen to cry then.

He would change drastically after that…never showing signs of sadness or happiness. It's as if his ability to feel these emotions died along with his wife.

Hiashi, Hinata's father, wouldn't be the only one to change drastically after that.

Hinata, without the comfort of her mother, grew up to be terribly insecure and timid. But the most noticeable change, however, was her love of the rain.

For her…the rain would be a reminder of the day she had lost her dear Okaa-sama.

And from then on, Hinata hated when it rained.

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**To be continued.**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Hi, I just revamped the summary, and removed unnecessary scenes in this prologue.


	2. Chapter 1 : White Eyes :

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto.

**A/N: **This is still the Chapter 1 you've all read. I'm not changing the story or anything, just a standard edited chapter. I've added bits and pieces here and there, also fixed the POV. Read on.

* * *

**Pathways  
**Chapter 1  
_White eyes_

* * *

_W-where…?_

Her body felt heavy, as if she was being weighed down by a something. She couldn't see anything. Blood was gathering at her head. Was she upside down? She couldn't tell but there's something wrong here. What happened?

"Do not free her from her binds," A voice spoke. She didn't know who it was but it had a calm yet scratchy quality to it. It was a mocking voice. "That's a direct order from Orochimaru-sama."

For some reason she recognized that voice, she just can't put her finger on it. But she was sure she'd heard that person before… _Who?_

"I don't give a damn." Another voice said. She got the impression that the person it belonged to didn't get along well with the first person. There was annoyance and a kind of detached feature in it.

_So dark…this is…?_ That second voice also sounded familiar. However, she had a feeling that it should be a little higher…

There was a grunt. "Watch your tongue Uchiha, you might loose it if you don't."

_Uchiha…? _She wondered if it was the same Uchiha she remembered from childhood. But that couldn't be right. The Uchiha she knew defected three years ago. How could he be here in Konoha?

Unless… she wasn't in Konoha at all. Come to think of it, didn't the first voice mention the name Orochimaru earlier?

The second voice, 'Uchiha', replied. "Like I said, I don't give a damn."

"Say what you want, Uchiha." She heard footsteps, growing fainter. The person was walking away, probably thinking that it was no use talking to someone who hears on one ear and lets it escape the other ear. "Just a note of warning though; you're here because Orochimaru-sama still has a use for you. Once your usefulness expires, well…"

Orochimaru was mentioned again. She didn't like what this entailed for her. Her body was still not cooperating. Her awareness was there but she just couldn't open her eyes. She felt lethargic.

A short dry laugh. "We'll see if you still don't give a damn when that time comes." With that, the footsteps grew fainter and fainter until it disappeared all together.

'Uchiha' scoffed. "What is it with these people always wanting to get the last words?" She heard him mumble.

There was the sound of creaking metal and then she felt her body dropped not so gently on the hard ground that smelt of rotten cloth.

Her teeth jarred from the impact of her body colliding with the stone floor. A whimper of escaped her lips. The throbbing pain sent a wave of awareness throughout her body. Her eyelids twitched.

"You're finally awake, Hyuuga."

She slowly opened her eyes and winced. Turning her face up, she saw Sasuke looking down at her, his arms crossed. "W-where am I?" Her entire body hurt so she had difficulty sitting up. _What happened? I feel dizzy… _More importantly, what was she doing here with Uchiha Sasuke?

Sasuke watched as she struggled with an apathetic expression. "Here." He said in a tone not meant to be annoying even though his answer _was_ annoying. Hinata got the impression that he really had no intention of irritating her, however he may act otherwise.

"W-where h-here?" She just knew something's wrong with her because she's having difficulty sitting up. "W-what happened?"

He rolled his eyes in disgust. "You're here. We're taking something from you then we'll kill you…" Sasuke crouched down to her level and narrowed his eyes. "Or spare you…Whatever."

Amidst his short speech, she finally noticed what was wrong with her – aside from her bruised and aching body, that is – her wrists as well as her ankles were bound, the reason why she was having trouble sitting up. She was in the middle of trying to generate chakra to cut the ropes loose when Sasuke got to the killing part. She instantly froze.

He was watching her with interest. He probably knew that she was generating chakra to sever the ropes binding her, and he probably also knew that she couldn't pull it off because her chakra was next to being completely depleted. She grimaced.

"Pathetic." He grouched making her jump.

"Y-you're g-going to k-kill m-me?" she squeaked, feeling like a trapped mouse.

He looked amused. "Not yet. That would come later."

"W-why…?"

Sasuke indicated his own black eyes with a forefinger, the amused expression still pasted on his face.

"M-my eyes…?" For a moment she stared uncomprehendingly and then she gasped in realization. "M-my Byakugan!"

"Bright." He complimented mockingly.

"B-but I t-thought that t-this has s-something to d-do w-with N-Naruto --"

In a flash, Sasuke had her in strangle-hold, their faces only inches apart. "Don't ever mention that name." He whispered harshly. "If I hear you say that name again, I will kill you."

Hinata was surprised by his uncalled for reaction. She wondered why mentioning the blond's name got him so riled up in a blink of an eye.

"U-Uchiha-san…I-I c-can't…b-breath…" She wheezed.

As if awakening from a nightmare, he released her neck and stared at his hands, having the visage of someone who had been burned. Hinata saw that his eyes held a strange glimmer in them, as if he couldn't quite believe what he had just done.

"My my, Sasuke." A raspy voice sounded off from the cell door. Hinata felt an uncomfortable shiver run up her spine and Sasuke tense in front of her. "It would not do at all if you killed her before we got what we want."

"You…why are you here?" Sasuke's cold voice asked.

Orochimaru smirked at Sasuke's back and leaned on the metal frame of the door. "Just checking if you're following my order."

_Order?_ Hinata wondered and watched skeptically as Sasuke reached for her bound wrists and proceeded to cut her ropes with deliberate movements. After the deed was done, he smirked. "What was your order again?" he stood up and looked at his mentor sardonically.

The latter gave a loud raspy bark of laughter. "You don't cease to amuse me, Sasuke." His licked his lips with his long tongue.

Sasuke watched the display in antipathy. "And you continuously disgust me, Orochimaru-_sensei_."

Orochimaru gave a dark chuckle. "Yes, I am that." After a moment's pause, the snake sannin's eyes fell to her and settled on her smarting cheeks, which she was sure was bruised. "It seems she put up a fight. Nothing you couldn't handle though, I presume?"

Sasuke scoffed; "It was painfully easy," he crossed his arms and looked down her, "as was expected from the weakest member of the Hyuuga clan." Hinata felt herself sag with the jibe, she bit her lip, preventing a cry of protest from escaping.

"She appears to spark your interest," Orochimaru darted his tongue out and gave a hissing sound. "I'll leave her to you then." The sannin left.

"I-I'm n-not w-weak…" She whispered when she couldn't take it anymore. She needed to defend herself.

At his soft mocking laughter, Hinata jerked and looked at him fiercely, her Byakugan automatically activating. "D-don't make f-fun of m-me!" she forcefully stuttered.

He ignored her and continued laughing at her expense and suddenly stopped.

Silence…

Then… "I'm not." He said seriously. He looked down at her and raised an eyebrow at her disbelieving expression.

"Y-you're lying…w-who else would y-you be l-laughing a-at?"

For a moment, his eyes obtained a faraway look but it was still directed at her…as if he was seeing someone else in her place. The look disappeared as quickly as it came. "Not at you. You remind me of someone…" Sasuke broke eye contact with her and focused his gaze on the cell door instead. "But you really are weak." He added, trying to change the subject.

However, this didn't dissuade her; she was much too used to being called weak that it's just a matter of principle to defend herself. Personally, she stopped caring a long time ago and instead focused on proving everybody wrong about their opinion of her…Of course, she's still not past that stage yet…and considering her situation now, maybe she never would.

All things aside, her curiosity was still piqued by what the Uchiha said. Who would he know that she would remind him off? She couldn't help herself to ask him, "W-who…?"

He didn't answer and instead started walking out of the wooden cell door. She watched him as he made to close the door when he paused. "The dead-last…" he said, "you remind me of the dead-last."

_Naruto-kun? _

Before she could pose another question, he already closed the door soundly. Through her still activated Byakugan, she saw him walking away from the wooden doors until he disappeared from her sight when she deactivated her Byakugan.

Naruto-kun…? Why would she be similar to Naruto-kun? There aren't many things that they have in common…in fact, the more she thought about it, the more she's convinced that mutually, the two of them shared nothing…except maybe for their singular desire to prove themselves.

But their similarity in that certain area stopped there. As far as she knew, Naruto had succeeded to prove himself a long time ago. And in her eyes, he still _is_ proving himself constantly.

Unlike her who's still stuck in a stand-still…always in the same place…wanting to move but can never step forward…

Never could find the right pathway to take.

Naruto was forever advancing…far ahead of everyone…

Far ahead of her…

The two of them are a hundred poles apart.

But Uchiha Sasuke said she reminded him of Naruto, not directly, no…

Dead-last…

She knew Sasuke used to refer to Naruto in this derogatory term. She learned this during her usually very short visits to Team 7's training area. But why would she remind him of the _dead-last_? More importantly…

Why is he even remembering…?

Isn't it that he doesn't want anything to do with his former teammates, much less his former best friend? So why is he still thinking about them?

Unless…

Unless he couldn't…couldn't forget about them.

She knew from experience that forgetting someone would be very hard, next to impossible even, if they were already engraved deep in one's heart. Is this also the case with Sasuke?

She could only speculate…

And all through the night, sleep evaded her…not because of fear for her life but because she could not stop thinking of the puzzle she accidentally stumbled upon…

Uchiha Sasuke.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

* * *

A loud bang accompanied the slamming of Tsunade's hand on her office table followed by a cracking noise. The other occupant of the room winced at the sight of the table split in half. The Hokage herself was unperturbed even though said table had been the fourth one she'd broken that week.

"What do you mean she just vanished?" Tsunade growled. "I gave you explicit orders! I told you not to return until you found her!"

The Anbu ninja cowered behind his mask, thankful for whoever was responsible for assigning Anbus with S.O.P. masks. "W-we --" high shrill, cough-cough "a-ahem…It is as reported, Hokage-sama, the Hyuuga girl just d-disappeared" cough "there was no sign of struggle, however," the Anbu produced something from within his cloak, "we did find this." He said while handing the procured object to Tsunade.

The Hokage held the object to the light and scrutinized it. "A flash note?" she stated blankly, indicating for the Anbu to explain.

"We conducted several experiments with it and found it to be positive with traces of evil chakra."

"Evil…" Tsunade thought for a moment and then her eyes widened, "you mean the chakra similar to the one in a cursed seal?" she didn't like where this is going.

The Anbu nodded in the affirmative. "The evil chakra is very similar to that chakra used during the fight of the Third. The only person we could think of who could have created such chakra would be…"

"Orochimaru." Tsunade clenched her teeth in anger. What is he plotting now? She clenched the note in her hand and punched the nearby wall with her hand. "In any case, her disappearance will cause quite a stir if we don't find her as soon as possible. Her father would not be pleased and may pose a problem for us if he's given a reason to believe that his clan is being threatened."

A rather large dent had appeared on the place where Tsunade had hit the wall. The Anbu gulped, making a mental note to avoid offending the lady Hokage in the future. "What would you have us do, Hokage-sama?" cough cough.

A tick appeared on Tsunade's left eye. "Find her. Meanwhile I will assign a team to work this puzzle out. If Orochimaru is behind this…" Tsunade let her statement hang. "Either way, whoever got her will surely use the secrets of the Byakugan she possesses. You're job would be to find her before such a thing happens." Tsunade looked directly at the Anbu, "Find Hyuuga Hinata."

The Anbu stood to attention and prepared to leave when Tsunade spoke, "By the way,"

"Hokage-sama?"

"Do something with that cold of yours," she crossed her arms over her large bosoms, "it irritates me to hear your coughing."

Cold sweat. "A-affir --" high nervous shrill "eherm…affirmative."

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**To be continued…**


	3. Chapter 2 : Invisible Barriers :

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto.

**Last time**:  
"_You're here. We're taking something from you then we'll kill you…" Sasuke crouched down to her level and narrowed his eyes. "Or spare you…Whatever."  
_"_Y-you're g-going to k-kill m-me?" she looked like a trapped mouse.  
__Although Sasuke personally derive no enjoyment in terrorizing people, he found that he particularly liked watching the scared expression of this one. "Not yet. That would come later."  
_…  
_He didn't answer and instead started walking out of the wooden cell door. She watched him as he made to close the door when he paused. "The dead-last…" he said, "you remind me of the dead-last."  
_…  
_A tick appeared on Tsunade's left eye. "Find her. If Orochimaru is behind this…" Tsunade let her statement hang. "Either way, whoever got her will surely use the secrets of the Byakugan she possesses." Tsunade looked directly at the Anbu, "Find Hyuuga Hinata."_

* * *

**Pathways**  
Chapter 2  
_Invisible Barriers_

* * *

"I have heard of the news when I came back from the mission."

Tsunade looked up from her paperwork. "And you're here because…?" But she really didn't need to ask for she already knew the reason behind why the young Hyuuga genius is there at her office.

"I want you to assign me the mission of retrieving Hinata-sama." Tsunade had to raise her brow at the complete lack of respect she was receiving. Apparently, not all were afraid of her.

"No." Her answer was curt and to the point. She raised her hand to silence any protest that will be forthcoming from the young man. Tsunade continued, "I know that you mean well, Neji, but I have already assigned someone for this job."

Neji stepped forward and gestured with his hand, "But she is my cousin, it is my duty to --"

"_And_ you're also an Anbu," Tsunade replied heavily "it is you're duty to follow protocol. When I say that you cannot be assigned this mission then you cannot be assigned this mission."

"Very well," Neji backed up. Surprise registered on Tsunade's face upon the Hyuuga's quick acquiescence nonetheless, she left it at that and began to focus her attention once again to the paperwork she was doing earlier before she was disturbed by the teenager.

"You said that I cannot be assigned the task of retrieving Hinata-sama," Neji spoke suddenly.

Tsunade knew she hadn't heard the end of this discussion yet so she refocused her concentration back at the Hyuuga in front of her and slowly stood up from her chair. Mentally, Tsunade prepared for another appropriate reply for whatever reasoning the Hyuuga genius will throw at her.

"However," Tsunade knew she wouldn't like what he would say next, "you did not say that I should not find her." Neji abruptly turned around. "I will bring my cousin back. Thank you for your time, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade was too stunned by what the Anbu captain did that the reply boiling to be released from her mouth stuck. She watched as Neji let himself out of her office and firmly closed the door behind him.

"Assign yourself a mission, why don't you." Tsunade sighed exasperatedly and tiredly plopped back on her chair.

A Hokage hardly gets any respect nowadays, especially from teenagers. What is wrong with young people these days? "At least they're one man short now." Tsunade resignedly placed her elbows on her desk and let her chin rest on her hand. "And wherever he is, please don't let him come back…at least not before we find Hinata." Kami only knows what he'll do if he finds out that Orochimaru had again taken one of his friends.

"Naruto…"

* * *

Hinata had been awake all night. It's been almost three days since she had been locked up in this dark place and the only time she would come into contact with another person was when one of Orochimaru's servants would open her cell door and bring her food. And even that had been very brief…

She sighed and hugged her knees to herself. Her village must be looking for her by now. And her family…they would be…

Hinata shook her head. She needed to get out of this place…but how? The first day she had been brought some food, she had been able to knock Orochimaru's servant out but she couldn't get past the door. It is like some sort of invisible barrier was keeping her from getting out. She would have tried using a ninjutsu but…

Hinata winced and looked at the finger imprints on her wrist. He had appeared and gripped her wrist so hard she felt like it would break…

_Hinata was in the middle of gathering chakra on her hands when a hand shot from the doorway and grabbed her wrist tightly, effectively stopping her from what she was doing. She looked up and was surprised to see red Sharingan eyes glaring at her. _

_It's Sasuke._

_He stepped closer to the point that their faces were only inches apart. Hinata was so terrified her lower lip began to tremble. His face showed annoyance and it carried to his eyes…except that those eyes were so much more frightening than his expression._

_The silence between them was so strong Hinata could hear her heartbeat. Right then, she could tell that her heart was pounding two times faster than it normally does…_

_Hinata was scared._

_Finally, he spoke. "Do you have a death wish?" Sasuke ground out and he forcefully pushed her to the floor. Hinata was so taken by her fear that she didn't feel anything when her rear connected with the ground._

_Sasuke fully entered Hinata's cell and then performed several hand seals. Hinata's heart almost stopped beating when she realized that he was going to use a Katon technique on her. She couldn't possibly hope to evade his attack so Hinata closed her eyes and prepared for the impact…_

"_**Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!**__" Sasuke let loose a stream of fire that burst into balls of flames. _

_Hinata could hear it but she can't feel anything…no pain whatsoever. She opened her eyes and was surprised to see that Sasuke had turned around and was aiming fireball after fireball at the doorway. What amazed her further was every fireball he seemed to hurl just disappeared before it reached outside…it's as if an invisible portal was swallowing the fireballs. Eventually, Sasuke stopped his assault on the doorway and waited. _

_Her eyes widened. The doorway then glowed a deep red and then…_

_Massive fireballs were being thrown at Sasuke's direction…at their direction. Sasuke lunched into a series of fast taijutsu moves to deflect the fireballs, causing them to veer at an angle and hit the solid stone walls instead. It's odd, really, the hot objects didn't seem to affect him and also…_

_Hinata noted that the fireballs the doorway threw at them were much larger and powerful than those that Sasuke made. If she had tried using ninjutsu earlier, she would have been…_

"_This doorway is infused with a special jutsu made by Orochimaru." He spoke suddenly._

"_J-jutsu…?"_

"_I am sure you already figured out what that jutsu can do," Sasuke slowly turned around and looked down at her from her position on the floor, "if you're so eager to die, just tell me and I will be the one to kill you." He said icily, referring to her actions earlier that would have triggered the effects of the jutsu. If he hadn't stopped her, she would have been badly injured right then or worse; she would have probably been dead by then._

_She didn't reply and could only look up at his eyes that were still red from his activated Sharingan. From her position, she could clearly see the three pinwheels swirling slowly. He sneered, "Look at you…you're supposedly an owner of a blood limit that could 'see through anything' and yet you didn't use it to know how a doorway could stop you from getting out." _

"_I didn't think that --"_

"_That's just it, Hyuuga, you didn't think." He deactivated his Sharingan, "I hate stupid and weak people like you."_

Weak…

Hn, yes…she is weak.

And she's stupid as well.

Hinata's eyes began to water. She hugged her knees more tightly and let the tears fall. Ashamed at her weakness…ashamed that someone as strong as Sasuke would be the one to clearly point it out…it's not really a great secret of hers, it's just that nobody ever told this to her at her face. Hinata's used with people hinting at her weakness but they never said it outright. Only her cousin Neji did and even then, he took it back, telling her that he had not really meant what he had said and even apologized to her.

Sasuke…he would never apologize to her…what's more…

She had a feeling people like Sasuke never say anything they didn't mean…

* * *

"You should not have stopped her."

Sasuke turned around and faced the owner of the voice. "Are you following me?"

Kabuto approached Sasuke, "That girl…it would have saved us a lot of trouble if you just let her ninjutsu backfire on her." Kabuto took note of the deepening frown on Sasuke's face, "And…what if I _am_ following you?" he smirked.

In a flash, Sasuke got hold of the front of Kabuto's shirt. "Don't try my patience," he snarled through gritted teeth.

"Tough then because I already am. And frankly, to quote you, _I don't give a damn_." The fact that Sasuke is already raising him off the ground didn't seem to bother Kabuto in the very least. Sasuke noticed this too and true to his nature of hating wasted efforts, Sasuke's temper flared all the more giving him enough strength to throw Kabuto at the nearest wall – hard enough to cause a cracking sound – without using chakra control. Kabuto's side collided with the wall after which he fell in a heap at the floor.

Sasuke felt satisfaction when the white haired medic-nin gave a groan and clutched his side. This satisfaction however, was short lived when said medic-nin used a healing jutsu to mend the broken bones on his ribs.

Kabuto gave a raspy laugh, "You are seriously underestimating me if you think a simple _spur of the moment_ gesture would hurt me, Uchiha." He shakily raised himself up on his knees. "Let me tell you now, I don't trust you as Orochimaru-sama's new vessel. I will be watching your every move and if I have any reason to believe that you're betraying Orochimaru-sama, I will be the one to personally put an end to your life."

Sasuke's eye twitched. He knew that Orochimaru's right hand man was just trying to get another rise out of him…to show him how futile his efforts would be if ever. The damn man could heal himself for Kami's sake. This particular person reminded Sasuke of a fly.

Always hovering but not quite reachable when you swat at it, in other words…

An annoyance.

And Sasuke's experience with annoyances was that they would eventually leave you alone when you ignore them. However, he had an appropriate comeback for Kabuto's last statement. He knew getting in the last words was not his usual cup of tea but the opportunity was too good to pass up.

So he said while he walked away, "You can't kill me…not if I kill you first."

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…**to be continued**

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Regarding Hinata's musings, I know that Sasuke was wrong about a couple number of things…especially when he underestimated Naruto's strength and overestimated his own power as well…but hey, Hinata doesn't know these now does she? I know that the story this chapter contained seemed to drag but I needed to build up the characters of both Hinata and Sasuke and also, to show where their relationship stands in the beginning.

Anyway, please review!


	4. Chapter 3 : A Ninja's Way :

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto…if I did then I wouldn't be broke like I am now.

**

* * *

**

**Pathways**  
Chapter 3  
_A Ninja's Way_

_

* * *

_

To an outsider, Otogakure would appear to be a peaceful enough place. Its inhabitants, mostly missing-nins from various other hidden villages, hardly ever traipsed along the streets. Fights among its occupants rarely happened and when they did, more often than not, it was due from inebriation…A few punches thrown here and there but nothing serious.

Another very noticeable attribute of Otogakure, aside from harboring many missing-nins, is that all of its inhabitants were ninjas. This was probably due to the fact that the village was only recently established and that having denizens short of being ninjas would only cause it to be vulnerable to other hidden villages more powerful and larger than it.

However, _that_ was what outsiders – and other villages for that matter – were made to believe. Uchiha Sasuke, on the other hand, knew otherwise.

He knew Otogakure was anything but peaceful. For one thing, only those residing in the village knew that it was called Otogakure.

The reason behind the village's lack of hustle and bustle was that its residents were busy creating hustle and bustle _elsewhere_. Fights rarely happen because ninjas who call themselves Oto ninjas didn't care enough for each other to even bother starting a fight.

He also knew that as far as Otogakure's leader was concerned, only people who had the skills worthy of being called a ninja have any right to live inside his village…

To be a part of his own army of destruction.

Sasuke, as power hungry as he had become, wasn't blind to the truth. He knows all these things…and more.

He's aware that his body was being coveted and prepared by and for Orochimaru. Now, if he was any other person, he would immediately cut any ties with the Snake Sannin…

But he's not. He _is_ after all, an avenger

In his case, it is just a matter of ignoring one's conscience and choosing to be blind to what's really going on in favor of an ultimate goal.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes to protect it from the glare of the setting sun and slowly stood up from his perch on the rooftop of Orochimaru's stronghold. The red hues from the orange ball of fire hurt his eyes but he welcomed it. It reminded him of his own Sharingan eyes…

The same as the eyes of the one who had betrayed him and his clan…the person he hated most of all.

_Itachi…_

For so long as Sasuke could remember, he had always been cast in the shadow of his brother…and now after so many years of being apart, he's still followed and haunted by that same dark phantom.

Slowly, Sasuke touched the side of his neck, where his cursed seal was. Yes…he chose to look at the world – his world – with rose tinted glasses all for the love of retribution. He betrayed his friends…his precious people for the sake of casting a shadow greater than that of his brother's.

He would walk the path towards his own self-ruin so that the ghosts screaming inside his mind would find peace…so that he could once again enjoy his beloved silence.

Willingly, he would allow Orochimaru to use him as a tool of destruction in order to fulfill his life's purpose.

However…he'd be damned if he let Orochimaru manipulate him before he had his revenge.

Everything was happening too soon than Sasuke would have liked. At the rate things were going, Orochimaru's mind will have already transferred in his body before he even got a chance to exact vengeance on his brother.

First there was the Hyuuga heiress and her bloodline ability which Orochimaru so seriously coveted. Without the possible means for Sasuke to obtain the Mangekyou Sharingan, Orochimaru had developed this strange obsession with the Hyuuga clan's bloodline limit; the Byakugan Eye. Orochimaru wanted for Sasuke to obtain this particular bloodline limit so as to further enhance and compliment his Sharingan which was already in the Final Form.

The method as to acquire the Byakugan was simple enough. Orochimaru will have to use a variation of his immortality technique on a Byakugan wielder and Sasuke wherein he would transfer a part of the latter's mind into that of a chosen Hyuuga clan member. This will be done via blood synthesis; the mixing of the bloods of a Sharingan Eye wielder and a Byakugan Eye wielder.

This plan, however, as Sasuke later found out from Orochimaru, wasn't exactly foolproof. The Snake Sannin had explained about the mild _side-effects_ of the blood synthesis but Sasuke still had his misgivings about the whole idea.

"The blood synthesis is a two-way process," Orochimaru had said in his usual creepy way of talking. Sasuke had understood what the term meant but wasn't too sure if he fully grasped the implication behind the word. Orochimaru went on to explain that through this, the blood of the Hyuuga will course through Sasuke's veins and in return, his own Uchiha blood will run through that of the Hyuuga's.

As conversations between him and Orochimaru usually went, a third party butted-in, in the form of the Snake Sannin's right-hand man, Kabuto. Apparently, according to the medic-nin, the implication of one such process would be a sort of 'power sharing'. Because the bond that will allow Sasuke's mind to access the Hyuuga's mind will be the mixing of blood between the two blood limit holders, it would be natural to assume that through the same process, the Hyuuga will also gain access to Sasuke's mind.

In short, Sasuke would be able to access the bloodline limit ability of the Byakugan wielder and in return the Byakugan wielder will also be able to access his bloodline limit, the Sharingan.

If anything, it sounded like a win-win deal to Sasuke.

Except for the fact that the Hyuuga will not exactly be benefiting from any of it all, as Kabuto further explained; the completion of the variation of Orochimaru's immortality jutsu will take time because the mixing of the Hyuuga blood to that of Sasuke wouldn't be that fast. Rest assured, once the Hyuuga blood and Uchiha blood in Sasuke finally become one…Once Sasuke has gained full understanding of the Byakugan via the Hyuuga's mind…

The Hyuuga will be…

Well…

Sasuke didn't really give a fig of care, however…

"_I-I'm n-not w-weak…" it was so soft Sasuke barely heard it. When he did register what she said, he gave a small equally soft laugh._

_She jerked and looked at him fiercely, her Byakugan automatically activating. "D-don't make f-fun of m-me!" she forcefully stuttered._

However…

_For a moment, Sasuke thought he saw familiar electric blue eyes staring dubiously back at him but the illusion vanished as quickly as it came to be replaced by disbelieving milky white eyes. "Not at you. You remind me of someone…" he said._

"_Who?" she asked._

_It took him a while to answer and when he did, he was already out and closing her cell door. "The dead-least…" he said, "you remind me of the dead-last."_

"Hmm…" Sasuke couldn't, for the life of him, explain why he had said that. The Hyuuga girl and that dobe had nothing in common at all. Perhaps he was just being too affected by what she had said when they had battled it out in the forest?

Sasuke pondered this and the events of five days ago came unbidden into his mind.

_He spotted her just outside the borders of Fire country. She was leading a team of academy students on what he could guess as a sort of survival training. _

_Always being a no-nonsense person, Sasuke had not wasted any time on pleasantries and had immediately attacked the Hyuuga and her academy students. It only came as a mild surprise to him that for all the show she had put on appearing to be casual, she had actually noticed him hiding his presence all along and as such, had been ready for his attack. _

_Rising in her element as a sensei, she let the frightened students run while she distracted him by parrying all his attacks with her Juuken fighting style. That suited Sasuke just fine because he wasn't there for the kids anyway._

_One kid, from Sasuke's brief observation earlier may have easily been the most boisterous of the lot, had had enough guts to throw a flash note in his direction in an attempt to help his sensei. The punk must have counted on the fact that his sensei wouldn't be affected because of her eye ability._

_However, the attempt had been a complete waste of effort since his Sharingan eye saw the movement and he had caught the flash note before it activated. He had crumpled the note, deactivating it by exerting his chakra on it. Sasuke must applaud the kid, however, for thinking of such thing._

_It's just sad that he had to kill the brat because the brat had made the mistake of underestimating him. _No one_ underestimated Uchiha Sasuke._

_He deftly made the seals for a Katon technique. The Hyuuga had sensed his intentions and had quickly jumped into his line of fire, blocking the stupid punk from his view. By then, it had been too late for him to stop his assault and had released a **Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu (Dragon Fire Technique)** directly on the Hyuuga. _

_There was a loud impact and a thick cloud of smoke. When the grey substance subsided, he was surprised to find the Hyuuga unscathed. She was surrounded by a barrier made from chakra which she emitted from the palms of her hands and she was moving her arms in a sweeping fashion just like in an exotic dance. Sasuke observed the chakra patterns using his Sharingan and concluded that the thick chakra she was weaving provided 360 degrees of protection for her body. _

"_**Shugo Hakke Rokujuuyonshou (Guardian Eight Divination Signs, Sixty-Four Palms of the Hand)**!" she shouted without her usual stutter._

_So that's what it's called. He still didn't know what this technique could do so Sasuke threw a kunai at it and saw the kunai burst into a million fragments. Technically speaking, the object didn't really explode. By way of closer examination, it only appeared to explode because it was cut into a million pieces when it connected with the chakra barrier. Sasuke had been able to observe this thanks to his eye ability._

"_So your technique could cut through _almost_ anything…I see," Sasuke smirked when she scowled at his emphasis. "But can it cut through this? **Chidori (Thousand Birds)**!" He shouted as he gathered chakra to his hand. Once it was complete, he charged at great speed at the Hyuuga and her irritating barrier._

_Their chakra clashed in a deafening sound similar to a knife scratching a rusted metal surface. Being that close, Sasuke took note that, indeed, this technique of the Hyuuga was strong and she was able to strengthen it by expelling more chakra to her palms. _

_But…he also took note that he was at a great advantage because he was only utilizing the Chidori at par and already she was showing signs of weariness. He was sure that if he released the full power of the Chidori, he could finally break through her barrier._

"_You're loosing, Hyuuga." Sasuke sneered. "Give up now!"_

"_N-no! I will never give up!" She shouted back. "I-I w-will…I will protect them!"_

_Sasuke had gritted his teeth while increasing the chakra he was expelling to his left hand. Stupid till the very end she was. He smirked, "I'm not after your precious students if that's what you're thinking."_

_Sasuke felt her barrier weaken for a second. "W-what do you mean?" Her face held a surprise expression._

"_Exactly what you heard," he paused, "now, you can come out of this unharmed. This is your final chance to give up." He was giving her a chance to back out not because he didn't want to hurt her; it was because he didn't fancy carrying an unconscious girl back at Otogakure. That would be too much of a bother for him._

_He could see her sweating hard due to her effort to keep up with him. "I-I don't k-know what you meant to s-say…b-but I don't g-get back on my w-words…Absolutely!" She smiled the smile that used to irritate Sasuke when he sees it on a certain someone. "That is my ninja way!"_

Hmm…her ninja way…On hindsight, Sasuke didn't see any reason for him to be affected by these words. It's useless standing up to something that would endanger your person in the end.

Look where that got her.

He also didn't see why he would care...but he did.

And he hated himself for it.

* * *

"This is impossible…" Tsunade's eyes held a disbelieving look as she read the mission report the Anbu ninja presented her.

"Hokage-sama?" A worried Shizune asked from beside her, already trying to peer on what Tsunade was reading. Her eyes widened, "Is that…?"

Tsunade nodded. "It's the results of the investigation on Otogakure. "However, I'm finding myself hard-pressed to believe it."

"Why? What does it say?" Shizune gauged the expression on Tsunade's face and didn't like what she saw.

"It says that all traces of Orochimaru in Otogakure have disappeared."

"Well…isn't it expected of him to do so?" Shizune scratched her chin in a thoughtful manner. "I mean we _are_ trying to find him…"

"Yes but, the whole of its ninja occupants? All gone?" Tsunade frowned. "I know Orochimaru is a heartless bastard but I highly doubt he'll kill-off his ninja army just for the heck of it. It says right here…Otogakure as it is now, looks nothing more than a ghost town."

Shizune frowned as well. "I find it hard to believe myself," she smiled weakly, "but look on the bright side; at least that's one-less enemy village to worry about."

"But now…we will have to agonize over where to find Orochimaru. He could, at this moment, be hiding at any village."

Shizune face faulted. "Hmm…you're right."

"And this also means we have to extend our search for Hyuuga Hinata." Tsunade gave a large sigh and closed her eyes wearily. "She could now be at any village…damn it all to hell! That would mean a larger delegation. I don't know where to get that many ninjas for this one mission!" That's true. And even if she did have that many ninjas, she can't just pull them off from their missions to assign them on a single task. Konohagakure would become poor if that.

Shizune cringed as Tsunade bashed her fist on her desk top with enough force that it split in half. _That's the fifth one._

"If only all residents of Konoha are ninja geniuses then I wouldn't have a problem on work force now." Tsunade bemoaned.

Shizune's eyes lit up. _That reminds me…_"Hey! Didn't Neji come by here?"

The Godaime's forehead wrinkled in a frown. Obviously, she was remembering how the Hyuuga disrespected her. Shizune took this as her cue to continue. "You told me he assigned himself the mission of searching for Hinata-chan." Shizune raised her finger in the air, "Neji _is_ a genius possessing the Byakugan and well…"

Tsunade perked up. "…He could see for miles around…" she continued for Shizune. Tsunade beamed, "Shizune, _you are_ the genius!"

"Hehe…I am?" Shizune laughed, embarrassed to be praised by the Hokage. "I guess I am!"

Tsunade's eye glinted and she smiled craftily to herself. With Neji's meddling, she could afford to send only a few ninjas on Hinata's trail without the Hyuuga clan accusing her of neglecting her duty as Hokage to their clan. That Neji…

_He isn't such a disrespectful boy after all._

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**_To be continued… _**

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**Author's Notes: **Just so you know, I'm not a native speaker of the English language…which may explain a few inconsistencies on the grammar. And for these, I apologize in advance to those of you who may be offended by the mistakes.

Back on track! I am finding it very hard to piece the story up so that it will read smoothly. Finding loopholes after finishing with a chapter and then editing it again so that it will connect with the previous chapters is very mind numbing and frustrating as hell. So I need your help on this…if you find any loopholes or things that don't add-up, please tell me. Questions about the story also help me to look things in another perspective.

On another note, I'm not a nitpicky person when it comes to reviews. In fact, I'll take anything I can get…praises, comments, questions, and even flames when it comes right down to it. However, I am very _very_ choosy on accepting flames. If you ever do flame me, please specify why you are doing it and not just typing anything you'd _think_ will piss me off. Do it properly so that I am _actually_ pissed off. Hahaha! As it were… what someone typed in the review was actually my favorite expression – yes I know I'm a screwed-up individual – and instead of getting a rise out of me…that someone actually made me _laugh_! Although I am curious as to what that person really meant because I really took it as a compliment…that is…until my sister pointed out that it was meant to be an insult. Haha! Well…better luck next time...you know who you are!

And finally, for the wonderful reviewers…**Thanks so much**!

Please review!


	5. Chapter 4 : His Reason :

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto.

**A/N: **Sorry for the long wait! Got school work cropping up faster than mushrooms.

Thanks for everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter!

* * *

**Pathways  
**Chapter 4  
_His Reason_

* * *

_This couldn't be good_, Hinata's mind whispered in an odd combination of calm and panic. And as she looked at the strange characters being written on the floor in vertical and horizontal patterns, she couldn't help but agree.

Definitely not good.

But perhaps she was getting a bit too paranoid? After all, they had promised to kill her once they were done with getting her Byakugan. What could possibly be worse than that?

Or maybe she was feeling like this because the ninja across her kept staring at her in a creepy fashion? Hinata looked at Kabuto and saw the white-haired medic-nin smile at her mysteriously.

She quickly averted her eyes and felt the blood rush to her face. That was really weird. The only other person to smile at her that way was her cousin Neji during the chuunin exams. And even that had been different.

Her cousin's smile never sent chills up her spine. But Kabuto's did.

Hinata counted to ten and slowly breathed a sigh. Once she got rid of the tension she was feeling, she lifted her head again and observed her surroundings; this time, purposefully avoiding looking in Kabuto's direction.

She was in a small room, with only torches on either wall illuminating the place. Aside from Kabuto and the two sound ninjas guarding her, the only other persons in the room were Orochimaru and Sasuke.

Orochimaru was at the center, writing characters she'd never seen before. Surprisingly however, even though she didn't recognize the writings, the pattern on which they were being written appears very familiar. She just couldn't point where she had seen it before.

And Sasuke…

Hinata peeked at him through the corner of her eyes and saw him leaning against the wall, his eyes narrowed, lost in his thoughts.

He's an enigma to her. No matter how many times she tried to solve the air of mystery surrounding him, she still couldn't understand what made him do all the things that estranged Konoha to him.

Outside, he appeared tough and impenetrable...but what about inside?

_The dead-last…you remind me of the dead-last. _

Hinata bit her lip. Back then, when he said that, he hardly sounded like the heartless person she heard other ninjas say he was.

At that time, she saw something in his eyes…something she can't begin to describe. She wasn't even sure if it had been there at all or if she had just imagined it. Nevertheless, she was sure of one thing.

He sounded sad when he mentioned about Naruto.

Could it be that he still thought about his friends in Konoha? Hinata couldn't tell; Sasuke could hide his emotions very well.

She continued to scrutinize him further until she had to avert her eyes downward when he suddenly glanced at her direction, probably feeling her observing him. She pretended to appear nonchalant by studying the seal(1) attached to the rope binding her wrists together but she could feel his eyes trained on her. Hinata sighed. Probably, she'll never know the answers to her questions.

A movement in the center of the room caught her attention. Orochimaru was already standing, finished with what he was previously doing. He was saying something to Kabuto but it was too faint for her to hear. The latter was nodding his head to whatever Orochimaru was telling him and Hinata almost squeaked in surprise when the two of them simultaneously snapped their gazes towards her, all of the sudden.

"Bring the girl here," Kabuto commanded the two sound ninjas at her back, motioning to the patterns written on the floor.

One of the ninjas roughly pushed her, causing her to almost loose her footing. It was a lucky thing that she was able to catch herself; otherwise she would further embarrass herself in front of Sasuke. In her mind, the incident about the special jutsu and her own stupidity was still very fresh. Anymore mishaps and she would never be able to salvage her dignity.

Hinata was lead to the center of the room, where the markings were written on the floor. She squinted. There was something disturbingly familiar with the way the symbols were drawn. Where had she seen those patterns before…?

Hinata continued to stare at the floor, scrutinizing every detail, while unconsciously trying to wriggle her wrists out of their bonds.

_The outline seems familiar too…where have I seen these?_ A particular marking caught her attention. Among all the others, this one stood out like a sore thumb. It almost looked like the seal given to the Hyuuga Branch Family; the **Juuin Jutsu**. The swastika(2) was unmistakable.

The pair of black sandals next to the swastika was also unmistakable…

Wait…_Black sandals?_

Hinata snapped her head upwards, so fast that she almost got whiplash. Right in front of her stood Sasuke, his face looking as blank and unemotional as a piece of plank could get. The fact that he was having a staring contest with her made his vacant expression all the more unsettling.

Frivolous though it may sound, Hinata wished to win _this_ contest. Even though it's as trivial as it could get – a staring contest – she wanted victory. She wanted to show him she wouldn't back down from anyone…not even against him.

They remained like that, looking into each other's eyes. Dark onyx eyes to pearl white eyes. Hinata could feel the sweat running down the nape of her neck. She was becoming extremely nervous. No one could blame her however; anyone at the receiving end of Sasuke's stare would feel the same way.

A crease formed on Hinata's forehead. Who was she kidding?

He could win this staring contest if he wanted. Hinata averted her eyes. She just can't stand him looking at her that way…as if he wanted her out of his sight. Hinata had more self-preservation than that.

"Here." His voice broke through her thoughts. She started when a kunai was suddenly thrust towards the general direction of her hands.

"Wha-what a-are y-you…?" Great. She was going to get killed and she couldn't even finish a sentence without stuttering. Hinata closed her eyes, preparing herself for the pain.

She felt the cold metal of the kunai against her wrists and then the sound of ropes being cut…but no pain.

Hinata opened her eyes and held her wrists up, noting the slight swelling. She looked down at the discarded pieces of rope on the floor and then at Sasuke, whose attention was no longer on her.

"Let us start the synthesis." Orochimaru's voice sounded-off from the side.

The Snake Sannin's words managed to divert Hinata's mind from Sasuke's good deed. _Synthesis?_, she thought. _What did he mean by that?_

"Sasuke," Kabuto prompted.

Hinata looked from one to the other, sensing that they were talking about something she was better off not knowing. She watched in shock as Sasuke proceeded to nick the palm of his right hand with the kunai he had used to cut her ropes. A small trickle of blood oozed out from the gash but Sasuke took no notice of it. Without saying anything, he handed her the kunai.

Hinata hesitantly took it with shaking hands. "Wh-what…" she stared at the kunai questioningly and then glanced at the blood flowing from Sasuke's wound. The angry looking cut seemed mighty painful, Hinata had to flinch. "You're hand…i-it's…" She tried reaching for his right hand, positive that she had enough chakra then to perform a healing jutsu.

He snatched the kunai from her. "Oh for…" Sasuke gave off an indistinguishable sound, but it sounded very close to an annoyed snort on Hinata's ears. Grabbing Hinata's hands, Sasuke made a vertical cut on her palm, drawing blood. She winced.

The deed done, Sasuke tossed the kunai to Orochimaru, who deftly caught it. Twirling the object in his hands, Orochimaru licked his lips, his tongue darting out. "Let's begin." He licked clean the blood on the kunai after which he struck it on the ground, at the very tip of the last symbol he had written on the floor.

He began to chant.

The words he was speaking were foreign to Hinata. He talked fast…too fast that Hinata wasn't sure if the language he's using really_ was_ foreign.

But this fact didn't worry Hinata. What worried her was that, the symbols around her and Sasuke suddenly started to glow.

Moreover…

The way Sasuke was unexpectedly holding her hand got her really, _really_ bothered.

Bothered though she may be, there it was…happening right before her eyes. Their hands were joined…palm to palm. If it weren't for the fact that both of their hands were injured and that blood was slowly trickling down from where they made contact, Hinata could even go so far as to say that the whole ordeal was romantic.

In a distinctly creepy sort of way.

Sasuke staring at her, as if he wanted to murder her right then and there, didn't help matters any. It sure didn't comfort Hinata.

Breaking eye contact with Sasuke, she saw that aside from being able to glow, the characters written on the floor could also dance and walk.

And that was what they were doing right then.

Slowly but surely, they were dancing and walking…right up her and Sasuke's legs…passing on the skin of their arms…right up into their joined hands…and finally disappearing on the point were their palms connected.

In alarm, Hinata tried jerking free from the Uchiha's grasp. Try as she might though, his hold on her was firm, to the point that it almost got painful.

Realizing that Sasuke had no mind of letting go of her hand anytime soon, she stopped struggling altogether. And for several minutes, she watched in fascinated horror as the symbols on the floor crawled and wriggled their way up her arms, into the cut on her palm.

After what seemed like hours, the glow surrounding the expanse of the room, as well as Orochimaru's chanting, dwindled down and finally ceased, as the last symbol disappeared into Hinata's and Sasuke's hands.

In a sluggish manner, like in a dream, Hinata brought her hand in front of her. The vertical cut on her palm was still glowing, giving her face an unhealthy green sheen when the pale light of the glow illuminated it. She shook her hand, attempting to make it the greenish light disappear. "It's…s-still…g-glowing…"

There was a sudden sickening sound, like that of fresh eggs being cracked. Hinata tried to look for the source but all she could see were dark spots.

Belatedly, she realized that the sound came from her…or more specifically, from her head when it had hit the ground. After that, all went black.

* * *

The rain distorted the image on the water. It was dark and cold. But the blackness below the surface was very inviting.

The chilly bite of the water followed the embrace of the depths. For a moment, it was peaceful, although turmoil and raging emotions were just above the surface. And for a while, it remained like that…

Until a sharp stinging sensation traveled the length of her body, starting from her left palm, spreading out in waves.

Through the pain, light filtered out in two tiny slits, slowly chasing the darkness as they widened.

Groggily, her surroundings came into focus. The thatched roof illuminated by the light that leaked inside the enclosed space, from the door window; dank air and moss covered walls; a tattered mat on which she was currently resting…

There was no mistaking it.

Here's the cell they were keeping her locked-up.

Her cage.

But there was something very out-of-place, something that shouldn't be there.

If only her mind wasn't having a hard time processing what was happening, she would have noticed that there was something out-of-place too, about the way she was feeling…or not feeling.

Because instead of experiencing the pain, which she felt in great amounts earlier, she was feeling relief come from her injured palm. However, she failed to notice this because she was too far-gone by what she was seeing.

Or to be more precise, _who_ she was seeing.

It was hard to see what he was doing because only the ceiling reflected off the light from outside the cell, the rest of the room was clothed in darkness. But she knew it was _him_, even without activating her Byakugan. The way he blended with the shadows was a dead give-away.

She only knew of one person capable of doing that effortlessly. But right then, she was quite sure he wasn't trying; she even doubted that he knew she was already awake.

_What is he doing?_ Hinata thought. She found it odd that he hadn't noticed her change in breathing. What had him distracted so? Her curiosity was quickly getting the better of her although she knew she had to suppress the urge to use her Bloodline Limit because doing just that might alert him of her wakefulness. With such close proximity, something like that happening was no great impossibility.

A few minutes ticked past and Hinata felt it very hard to contain a shocked gasp from escaping her mouth...she suddenly knew the reason as to why he was there.

When he finally left the room, she had to stop herself from letting out a relieved sigh…not until she was sure he was out of ear shot.

Snappily sitting up like a taut willow, Hinata felt her head explode in pain. Only then was she reminded of her other injury…the one caused by her fall after she saw the creepy greenish light inside the cut on her palm.

Hinata grimaced. At least she could still remember that much before she passed out.

_But…_

She raised her left hand and activated her Byakugan, "There's nothing here anymore…" Hinata whispered to herself as she clutched her hand to her chest.

He had healed her.

* * *

A masked figure stealthily landed on a low tree branch, surveying his surroundings. After a moment, he jumped down, gracefully landing on his feet and crouching low to touch the ground.

The trail was beginning to fade.

He noted based on the markings on the grass that someone came by here…Possibly four or five days ago.

It was disappointing that he was still a ways behind but it was also comforting to know that he _was_ behind them.

At the very least, now he could use his technique without any fear of the enemy being able to detect it. It's always imperative to be cautious especially now that he didn't know who he was up against.

Although he knew he was a force to be reckoned with by his lonesome, he's not arrogant enough to think that there isn't someone out there much stronger than him.

And right now, a person very important to him is at the mercy of people he knew to be strong. Perhaps, he hated to admit, even stronger than him.

He took of his mask and gritted his teeth. _Hang on, Hinata-sama…_

"Byakugan!" Almost immediately, veins appeared near his eyes.

* * *

A tick started forming near Tsunade's left eye.

Twitch.

Her fingers drummed the table-top repeatedly.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

She started to grind her teeth.

Grind. Gnash. Gnash. Grind.

"And then I saw something. It was right there! Right at the edge of my eye! I always knew I was the best of the group so it wasn't surprising that I saw him first. So there I was," pause "did I mention that I was the one who saw him first?"

Tsunade's face started to spasm uncontrollably. Grr…

"Anyway, so there I was, about to –"

"Enough!" Tsunade smashed her fist on the table. It split in half.

Shizune winced. _That's the sixth._

The Godaime Hokage glared heavily at the 10 year old academy ninja. "Stop babbling nonsense and answer the one and _only_ question that I've asked you _hours_ ago!" With one big exhale, Tsunade calmed herself and leaned back on her chair. "Did you or did you not recognize those who took her, Souzo(3)?"

Souzo opened his mouth, closed it and then opened it again. "I – no," he crossed his arms and then looked away, embarrassed. "I don't. Sorry."

Tsunade sighed in irritation. An hour wasted. "Look, kid…you said you were the one to throw the flash note…" she began carefully.

Souzo nodded noncommittally. He was the one to throw it but he didn't stick around long enough to know what happened after that.

"…did you perhaps see where they took her? What direction?"

"No. And I was knocked out after a bit, along with the others." He grinned sheepishly. "That's the last I could remember after you found us." He gesticulated wildly with his arms. "Nice job at it…not! I mean, how could you not have found us…we were right there! Bound and gagged! It would be okay if it was just an hour or two, but nooo! You found us after only six whole days! How come you let us rot out there? We were so cold and hungry, that we –"

Twitch. "Ehem!" Tsunade cleared her throat in a threatening manner. "It's not as if we _knew_ you children were with her. Besides, what the lot of you did is against academy policies. I have half the mind to suspend you all, including your sensei for patronizing you kids." But that didn't sound quite right, Tsunade mentally amended. Hinata wasn't currently there to be punished after all.

She was away on Kami knows where; busy playing kidnap victim. Tsunade frowned again. That didn't come out quite right either. It's not really her fault she was kidnapped.

"Oh." Souzo laughed nervously. "Sorry 'bout that. I tend to get carried away sometimes."

The expression on Tsunade's face indicated that she wasn't the least bit amused. Souzo hastened to add, "Though if it's any consolation…I am quite certain that contrary to the 'they' you keep on asking me about…well," his young face showed a bit of pride, "it's just a 'he'. One person. A fairly strong one at that."

The lady Hokage narrowed her eyes. The boy's statement only confirmed her earlier suspicions. She had her doubts that Orochimaru would send an entire squad of ninjas just for a Chuunin level ninja and her academy students. No, it wasn't Orochimaru's style to operate in strength of numbers.

The snake sannin was more of the 'quality over quantity' type.

"So, can you describe the one who took your sensei?" Tsunade inquired.

"Well…" Souzo dragged his vowel, "it was a guy with black hair and pasty looking skin. The kind that looks clammy but really isn't…just way too pale. He has above average height and looks to be about 10 years younger than you, Obaa-san(4)." Tsunade twitched again. "Oh, and he had red eyes. Though I'm quite sure there are many people with red eyes out there, right?"

Shizune, at the mention of red eyes, gave Tsunade a sharp look.

No. Tsunade was quite sure there are only two people who could possibly fit the description Souzo gave. And the first one's already out(5).

There's only another one left.

Uchiha Sasuke.

* * *

"I'm getting you out of here." Sasuke told her in his usual curt manner.

Hinata gaped at hunched form as he proceeded to cut the ropes a sound nin had tied her hands and feet in earlier that day, only hours after Sasuke had healed her hand.

"W-why…" Hinata stammered as Sasuke forced her to stand up and then dragged her, by the upper-arm, towards the door. She winced from the pressure he was exerting on her limb. "S-stop…"

He gave her a distracted glance and turned his back on her, his hand never releasing his grip as he continued to pull her along.

Hinata was left to watch as he cautiously peered about the hallway outside her cell door, questions fleeting to and fro around her mind. Although she had no idea what was going on and why the Uchiha suddenly decided to help her, she was starting to get anxious as well.

Satisfied that they would go unnoticed, Sasuke began to drag her again, clasping her arm in a painful manner.

But Hinata decided that she couldn't take more of this kind of treatment and confusion.

She jerked her arm forcefully away…

And staggered back from the force she exerted, landing painfully on her bottom.

Surprise was written all over Sasuke's face; clearly he hadn't expected her little show of defiance. He held her arm a tad firmly than normal but he hadn't really put much effort on keeping her in place.

The blood slowly crept up on Hinata's face and she had to look away in extreme mortification. The only time she had decided to stand up for herself and she ends up in possibly, the most embarrassing moment of her life…so far.

After a while of tense silence (at least for Hinata), she heard him approach and then his black sandals entered her line of view.

"Are you going to stay there all day?" he asked in an unfamiliar tone. To Hinata, he sounded as though he was wavering between amusement and vexation. But something told her it was more of the former.

She angled her head towards his general direction but she refused to look at him. It was enough that he sounded amused at her expense. Seeing his expression would only shatter the remaining dignity in her.

She saw his hand extend towards, making as if to offer help. Hinata inwardly cringed.

Ignoring his proffered hand, she slowly stood up on her feet, all the while avoiding looking at him.

He was silent for a moment but she could feel his eyes looking at her. For her part, she affixed her gaze on the floor, still refusing to meet his eyes.

"Follow me." Sasuke turned and headed towards the door.

Hinata looked at him then. "W-why!" she half-whispered half-shouted. "I-I c-can't understand! Why are y-you helping m-me?"

She instantly saw him stiffen as soon as the words left her mouth.

"Let me make this clear, Hyuuga," he finally said after a while of intense silence. His words resonated in the tiny room, calm and yet chillingly cold, "I am not doing this to _help_ you." Sasuke turned towards her and for the first time since he came barging in inside her cell, she looked at him. Meeting his eyes.

What she saw confused her more than she already was.

His eyes were no different than before but she was certain…Reflected in his dark orbs were the eyes of a Hyuuga.

Her own eyes.

Sasuke continued in his grave tone, "I am doing this to help myself."

.

.

.

.

****

To be continued…

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

(1) _seal attached to the rope binding her wrists_ – I made this up. I can't very well have Hinata cutting every rope available by using her chakra.

(2)_The swastika was unmistakable_ – Not made up. This refers to Neji's green X seal thingy stamped on his forehead. It's my lame attempt on staying true to canon (pfft, yeah right ¬¬). See, the anime version of this seal is an 'X' where in fact, the manga version is actually a variation of a swastika.

(3) _Souzo_ – Again, made up by me. This punk's full name is Souzo Hanashii. I got his name from the Japanese word _souzoushii_ (noisy) and hanasu (talk). I sorta got carried away with the swapping of letters and all.

(4) _10 years younger than you, Obaa-san_ – Possibly made up…or not. Initially, when I wrote this, I had meant to say '30 or so years younger' but then I suddenly remembered that Tsunade uses genjutsu to make her appear much younger than her age. Do the math, Sasuke is 16 (almost 17) add 10 and voila! That's what her age appears to be…at least on young Souzo's eyes. Oh, and what made Tsunade twitch was being called obaa-san (literally 'grandma').

(5) _And the first one's already out_ – Tsunade referring to Itachi. Think about it, why would he kidnap Hinata? He already has the Mangekyou and besides, I mentioned in the earlier chapters that Hinata's captor has chakra similar to that of Orochimaru's.

And finally…

That's my longest chapter yet. Whew! At last, after a month and moreof slaving over how to write this and how to write that, the frikin' chapter is FINISHED! For any questions, feel free to ask me.

Thanks for reading!

And…

Please, PLEASE PLEASE! Review!


	6. Chapter 5 : Linked :

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto.

**A/N: **Thank you to all those who reviewed last time. I know this chapter is very late but well, you know what they say, "better late than never". Now for a quick recap…

**_Last time  
_**"_Let me make this clear, Hyuuga," he finally said after a while of intense silence. His words resonated in the tiny room, calm and yet chillingly cold, "I am not doing this to help you." Sasuke turned towards her and for the first time since he came barging in inside her cell, she looked at him. Meeting his eyes._

_What she saw confused her more than she already was._

_His eyes were no different than before but she was certain…Reflected in his dark orbs were the eyes of a Hyuuga. _

_Her own eyes._

_Sasuke continued in his grave tone, "I am doing this to help myself." _

* * *

**Pathways  
**Chapter 5  
_Linked_

* * *

_There was determination in his quick, easy strides as his usually were when he was certain of his destination. Already, his brain was simulating the conversation he was sure he would be having minutes from then…_

_Or maybe argument was more the term?_

_Sasuke scowled. No matter, it is of no consequence, he thought. The important thing was to resolve the more pressing issue happening with him._

_But perhaps in him would be the better word? _

_His scowl deepened._

_Ever since the goddamn Blood Synthesis, it was as if his mind was far removed from his body. He heard his thoughts in whispers…Like his consciousness wasn't the only denizen inside his head. He couldn't, for the life of him, figure what was going on. _

_And it annoyed the hell out of him._

_For sure, Orochimaru knows what the heck was happening and Sasuke planned to make the snake spit whatever it was that that he's hiding behind his tonsils…If he had tonsils._

_Stopping in his tracks, Sasuke pondered on his impending battle of wits with Orochimaru…until a red blot of color entered the edge of his vision. With a start, he turned and was faced with a run-of-the-mill tapestry hanging on Orochimaru's chamber door._

_He had been too engrossed in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed that he had finally arrived at the Snake's lair._

_Sasuke grimaced on his choice of words…_

_Lately, those were becoming weirder and weirder. He really wondered what was going on with him._

_Taking a moment to collect himself, he moved to open the door – without knocking of course, Orochimaru's too evil to deserve that kind of respect – and was stopped short when his eyes caught the kanji written on the tapestry._

_In a haphazard calligraphy, it read:_

"_Be it as it may, never let it stand in the way."_

_Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the aptness of words. It seemed that Orochimaru's deeds had been cut out for him – he glanced at the inscription again – in a nutshell._

* * *

_Inside the Snake's lair, numerous candles burned in an overcast glow. Shadows illuminated the walls. The blotches of shades were dark but the most noticeable of all were the sharp shadows of two figures opposite each other._

_One was a tad taller than the other, indicating that the owner of the shorter one may be small or just sitting down._

"_Everything's coming along nicely." Orochimaru hissed in a satisfied manner. His shadow, the shorter one, flickered on the walls as if echoing in agreement._

_Kabuto, who was standing in front of Orochimaru's chair, nodded, deep in thought. His was the taller shadow._

"_You are troubled?" The way it was said was more of a statement than a question. _

_Again, the white-haired medic-nin nodded. "I cannot help but think that the Hyuuga recognized the symbol for the Juuin jutsu." Kabuto brought his hand to his chin. "It could pose a problem for us if she happens to mention it to Sasuke. That boy is too brilliant for his own good."_

_Orochimaru stroked the armrest of his chair, contemplating the words his right-hand just said. "What do you suggest I should do about it?" _

"_Well…you could hardly kill the Hyuuga…not when the Blood Synthesis is yet to be complete." Kabuto answered. "It will also pose a threat to the Uchiha and to our plans." _

"_Hmm…" Orochimaru slowly stood up. "Then I will dispose of her when it is complete." _

_Kabuto leered. "Killing two birds with one stone." _

"_Yes." The Snake-sannin walked in front of the fireplace where a hand with a ring was displayed inside a glass case. "That swastika for the Juuin jutsu will make sure of that. With it linking the minds of both the Hyuuga girl and Sasuke, killing either one will be easy."_

"_So the death of the heiress will mark your transfer to the new vessel and –" Kabuto cut himself of when Orochimaru lifted a hand._

_Instantly, as all right-hand men were wont to do, Kabuto understood Orochimaru's signal. _

_In a silent manner, he crept from his position in the center of the room to the door. Lightning quick, he opened the door._

_And saw nothing. No one._

_Cautiously, he looked to the right of the corridor then to the left but still saw nobody there. _

_It was a false alarm, he thought. Shaking his head, he made to close the door when the script on the tapestry snagged his attention. Reading it, Kabuto had to raise an eyebrow._

"_In a nutshell." He murmured to himself quietly._

* * *

She was wincing for the fourth time Sasuke noticed, but damned if he cared.

Maybe his grip on her arm was a _bit painful_, so what?

Her movements were too slow for comfort. There was no solution he could think of to hasten her other than for him to drag her along.

Maybe he was a _bit_ _harsh_ on his treatment, so what?

_Hn…_

"U-uchiha-san…" Hinata breathed in a gasp. Sasuke didn't understand why but the way she said his name made his stomach clench. His grip on her limb tightened.

Hinata winced for the fifth time.

"What?" He ground out, not very keen on conversation. Not now.

Not when they could be caught anytime soon.

"P-please w-wait," Hinata panted as she tried to keep up with Sasuke's long strides. Any other day, keeping up wouldn't be a problem but she was too weak from the head injury she got after her fall, aside from her many other injuries that have yet to heal. Her vision was beginning to blur. Hinata knew that she must stop walking now or she might collapse.

For his part, Sasuke _heard_ (1) rather than felt, when the Hyuuga heiress planted her heels on the forest floor. Giving a fig of care, he pulled her arm forward more firmly. There was her painful intake of breath but she didn't budge. Not an inch.

The flare of temper came to him so unexpectedly that his Sharingan activated without him noticing it. Thoughts flitted to and fro across his mind but amidst these jumble, the thought of the _stubbornness and lack of cooperation _of the Hyuuga girl were highlighted like pinpricks. The other thoughts were smudges of things he wasn't sure were even his own.

He turned towards her direction then, when Sasuke was sure he couldn't hold back the verbal lashing he so wanted to give her any longer.

In that instant, he became aware of two things; one was that his Sharingan was activated; the other was the great amount of chakra heading their way.

It was only due to quick reflexes that he was able to shove the Hyuuga heiress aside with his body before a kunai went through – right where her head had been moments before.

His body was covering the heiress' when the force of the impact, through her, jarred both of them. Dimly, Sasuke wondered if she was hurt more than him – because of their position – but then remembered that he shouldn't give a damn.

"M-more are c-coming...!" Sasuke opened his eyes to the urgent whisper of the girl under him to find Byakugan eyes staring past his shoulder. Giving a curse, he grabbed her waist and shifted his weight to the side, taking her body with him as they rolled to the side – effectively evading three more kunai as the objects embedded themselves to the ground, about two hand-widths apart from each other, towards their location.

"Shit! He'd found us." Sasuke saw the heiress open her mouth to ask who had found them but he covered her mouth. "Just shut up." _You'd find out soon enough._

On cue, a smooth voice from above them said, "For twice a traitor such as yourself, I could say you're pretty lucky Orochimaru-sama is not here."

Both of them looked up and saw Kabuto crouched on a tree branch a few paces away from them.

"Looks like it's up to me to end your life after all." Kabuto sneered. "If I do say so myself, it is rather relaxing to know that there are many ways to end a life such as yours, eh Sasuke-_kun_?"

Sasuke ignored the confused gaze of Hinata directed at him. Never taking his eyes off Kabuto, Sasuke slowly stood up and scowled up at the Medic-nin.

Kabuto's sneer, noticing the Hyuuga heiress' confusion, deepened. "Oh, so I take it you haven't told her yet?" He shook his head in a mocking manner. "Well I guess that hardly matters now, is it?"

Sasuke clenched his fists and said to Hinata, who by that time was already standing up, "Prepare yourself."

Nodding, Hinata fell into the Juuken fighting style that was common to all Hyuugas but faltered at the last minute, swaying on her feet. Sasuke noticed this and looked sharply at Kabuto, a nagging suspicion forming in his mind.

Like a mind-reader, Kabuto said, "Don't look at me like that, I only put a small dose in her food. It won't kill her." Jumping down from the tree branch, Kabuto advanced on them. "You see, that's why you should never cross clever people because they always make back-up plans incase of contingencies such as a traitor."

_Damn it!_ So the bastard placed a drug on the Hyuuga's food – which would explain her sluggish behavior earlier. Sasuke glanced at Hinata who seemed to become more unsteady on her feet. Her Byakugan was already deactivated from the sheer effort it took for her to stay awake and fight off the mind numbing headache hammering on her head.

Kabuto paused. "Although if it's any consolation, I can't seem to decide how to go about killing you." He looked at Sasuke, "Should I kill the strongest," and then to Hinata, "or the weakest link first?"

Sasuke watched Kabuto warily. Beside him, the Hyuuga was struggling to regain her battle stance.

The white-haired Medic-nin leered. "I guess _Hinata-chan_ must go first." As he said this, he disappeared in a white and violet blur. He moved so fast, it was _almost_ impossible for Sasuke to see him when he reappeared in front of Hinata, ready to stab her heart with a kunai.

_Almost_.

Sasuke's own kunai was there to greet Kabuto's as he made to strike Hinata. Their kunai met in a twang of steel, momentarily filling the silence of the forest around them.

Sasuke gave a leer of his own. "As if I'll let you." He gave a mighty shove that pushed both of them at opposite directions, Hinata remaining at the middle, her head hurting too much to move.

Taking advantage of this, Kabuto again run forward to strike her and was again deflected by Sasuke's weapon.

"Hey, you stupid idiot! Get out of the way!" Sasuke shouted at her. "Stop playing the part of a useless Hyuuga and run!"

At his words, Hinata appeared to wake-up from her daze and nodded mutely. Turning around, she ran from the fighting, stumbling all the while.

"Now, now Sasuke, this fight would hardly be interesting without a girl to watch it." Kabuto dodged fireballs on his way up a tree trunk and then did a somersault, landing behind Sasuke and stabbing him directly in the spine. Sasuke vanished in a puff of smoke to be replaced by a block of wood.

Kawarimi no jutsu.

"As if I care for that." Sasuke said from behind Kabuto. Mimicking the former's actions, Sasuke pierced him on the back. And like Sasuke's, Kabuto's form disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

But it wasn't a Kawarimi.

"A clone…" Sasuke ground out and then his eyes widened in realization. "Damnit!"

Backtracking, he went off in the direction were Hinata went. The clone was just a diversion to keep him busy while Kabuto pursued the Hyuuga, being true to his word to kill off the weakest first, which would make sense because the bastard can never hope to defeat an Uchiha on a fair fight.

And this fight, Sasuke scowled, was not a fair one. That's why the right-hand of Orochimaru chose to dispose of Hinata first. She was the weaker of them both…No, she was more than that.

His scowl deepened.

She was his weakness. Despite how strong he was, he could effectively be killed through her…

But damned if he would let that happen.

* * *

"Have you any news of them yet?"

Shizune jumped from the question, like some unprepared rabbit. Well…mostly because she really _is_ unprepared, owing to the fact that they've not heard from the scouts or Neji in a while. "Nothing yet, Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade pursed her lips. "Hmm." Thoughtful silence. Stretching 'till forever. Then…"I find this strange somehow."

"What's strange?"

"About Otogakure." Pregnant pause. "I don't think we got things right."

Shizune moved closer. "You're worried about its sudden disappearance?" A nod. "Well, it is rather odd but so is everything about Orochimaru."

"Still…it is possible that he had deceived us somehow. Concealed the true whereabouts of his village, perhaps?"

Shizune scratched her chin thoughtfully. "You could be right but then again, we've found the village and it's practically empty. I don't think he could evacuate a village that big to somewhere else…At least, not without causing uproar among the other Hidden Villages." She smiled reassuringly. "If anything like that had happened, we should have heard of it by now."

The Hokage stood up and made her way to the window overlooking Konoha. "You're right. Maybe I'm just a little paranoid." Sigh. "If only I could look for them myself and not stay in this office bumming around all day."

"Tsunade-sama, don't say that!" Shizune, appalled. "You're not _bumming around all day_ as you say. Being a Hokage is tough job! Mental fatigue could be as tiring, if not more, as physical fatigue. You should know that." Pout.

"Even still. I can't help but feel that I'm depending on others too much to do all the work." Another sigh. "If only the stupid kid was here, I wouldn't be this worried."

"Well, you have Neji. He's as every bit as dependable as any ninja, probably more so than others. He might have even found Hinata by now!"

"Hmm. I hope." Lifted a hand to touch the glass. "I hope that this strange feeling will leave soon because I don't like it. Not one bit."

_Tell me about it_. Shizune glanced at the Hokage's desk and then back at Tsunade. _She really must not be feeling good if she neglected to smash her table in half during this episode._

* * *

Sasuke zipped through the forest until he caught fresh trails made by his quarry. Eventually, when he came upon Kabuto, the nin was engaged in close combat with Hinata who seemed to be holding her own albeit the odds were slowly shifting against her favor. From his vantage point, Sasuke could see several bleeding cuts already inflicted on her arms and shoulders by her opponent. Kabuto, on the other hand, had no injuries and appeared to be enjoying the fight.

_Not for long._

Forming the necessary hand seals, Sasuke released a torrent of fireballs aimed at Kabuto's back, fully expecting Hinata to see the attack and evade it…The attack was evaded alright.

But it wasn't Hinata who did the evading.

Seeing the blunder of the Hyuuga – or maybe his(2) – Sasuke swore as he loosened his control on the chakra connecting that of the fireballs to his, effectively warping the jutsu's trajectory.

The mass of flames barely missed Hinata who was braced to receive the brunt of the attack. As it was, the line created by the fireballs separated into two as if Hinata's body cut it in half.

The dry ground on either side of her gave off swells of smoke as the flames hit it instead.

_That was close_. If the assault had connected with the Hyuuga –

"Bravo. That was an excellent display of control." Sasuke was unable to finish the thought as he felt a burning pain on his side. "But I'm afraid I have to kill you now."

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**To be continued…**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

(1) Sasuke _heard_ rather than felt – Please don't ask about the meaning of this…I honestly don't know myself…Kidding! I know, really I swear! But I'm serious when I said don't ask. It will be explained in the later chapters. Hmm…I planted several others lines in this chapter and the next chapters (planning) like this…Maybe you can spot those…or maybe not.

(2) Seeing the blunder of the Hyuuga – _or maybe his_ – Sasuke feeling really weird and out of whack. This chapter is full of this kind of Sasuke moments. Maybe you can spot those…or maybe not.

Okay! I guess that's it for this chapter. It's not as long as the previous chapter and I'm pretty disappointed BUT then again, writing a story in Sasuke's perspective is pretty darn hard. I was ready to pull my hair out just thinking how to go about the whole stuff.

The only consolation I could possibly have is if you, my dear readers, enjoyed reading. So please feel free to review…

Go on…review…

Review…

Review…

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**Next chapter.  
**_Whispers of the Just_

_Written on Sasuke's face as he leveled a look in Kabuto's direction, was complete and utter cold-blooded merriment…and this expression frightened Hinata more than any of his cold looks and heated glares. _


	7. Chapter 6 : Whispers of the Just :

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto.

**Last time  
**_Sasuke swore as he loosened his control on the chakra connecting that of the fireballs to his, effectively warping the jutsu's trajectory._

_The mass of flames barely missed Hinata who was braced to receive the brunt of the attack. As it was, the line created by the fireballs separated into two as if Hinata's body cut it in half._

_The dry ground on either side of her gave off swells of smoke as the flames hit it instead._

_That was close. If the assault had connected with the Hyuuga – _

"_Bravo. That was an excellent display of control." Sasuke was unable to finish the thought as he felt a burning pain on his side. "But I'm afraid I have to kill you now."  
__  
_

* * *

**Pathways  
**Chapter 6  
_Whispers of the Just_

* * *

Hinata's hands shook as she realized that the jutsu missed her. Barely.

If ever, her demise would be her own doing and she felt very much chastised for it. It was really stupid of her to not dodge the attack when she had seen Sasuke do the hand seals. Kabuto, on the other hand, had his back turned and still managed to evade the onslaught originally intended for him. She can't blame her mistake on the drug he gave her because its effects had already thinned in her system.

How can she be so weak and useless? First she failed to protect her students and now she was relying on Sasuke to do all the fighting for her. She ran away when she should have stayed and she stayed when she should have run away.

Now, she can't will herself to open her eyes and look at Sasuke's face, afraid of the rebuke she might see there.

"Bravo. That was an excellent display of control." Hinata heard a voice, which unmistakably belonged to Kabuto and a gasp that she was sure wasn't his. "But I'm afraid I have to kill you now." Kabuto's voice continued.

"No…" Hinata whispered to herself as she finally opened her eyes just in time to see Sasuke cough up blood and fall to his knees, revealing the white-haired nin standing just behind him.

Kabuto's hands were engulfed in a bluish chakra.

Hinata's eyes widened as she recognized the jutsu. "**Ch-chakra no m-mesu**…(1)." It's an ancillary jutsu especially utilized by medic-nins for healing purposes. However, it could also be used in battle by anyone who can manage to control its wild temperament. The technique is quite similar to that of the Juuken in that it extends chakra into the target's body. While the Gentle Fist paralyzes tenketsu, the Chakra no Mesu cuts muscles and/or blood vessels without any visible injury.

Sasuke coughing up blood could mean that a vital organ, possibly the stomach or the lungs, had been damaged. She had some medical experience – being tutored personally by the Hokage before she became an Academy teacher – and she could tell that if she didn't do anything right away, the damage would be irreparable. It could cause Sasuke's death.

Right. She knew what to do.

Hinata glanced at Sasuke's figure, hunched in pain and spitting out more blood by the second, and then she glanced at Kabuto, who was watching Sasuke, looking like Death himself.

Still…knowing what to do _and_ actually doing what she had to do were entirely two different things. Her fear that if she went any closer, what happened to Sasuke would also happen to her kept her rooted to the spot until she had to back away – because of that same fear – when Kabuto slowly advanced towards her.

"Don't worry," Kabuto said in a mocking tone, "that attack wouldn't kill him…at least, not in the way you think. However, it will momentarily render him incapable to help you." Kabuto raised his chakra infused hands as he neared her. "Are you ready to die, Hyuuga heiress?"

_No…no I'm not ready to die…!_ Hinata knew that if she can't survive this, she must at least make it hard for him to kill her. She could do that but…_Uchiha-san is so much stronger than me but then he…_ She looked at said Uchiha, just a ways behind Kabuto, hunched on the ground. If Sasuke ended up like that on the hands of Kabuto, what chance could _she_ hope to have?

But then…Hinata remembered _him._ It seemed so long ago…a lifetime past…but his words still rang strong and true in her mind.

"_I never give up!"_

Always, he challenged the world that was so bent on putting him down. And he never failed to deliver. Hinata admired his fortitude, something she wished she had for herself. She had vowed to follow his example no matter what it took and it shamed her now that faced with death, she could easily forget. After all these years, she was still wishing…

"_That is my ninja way!"_

Determination filled her as those words, spoken long ago, reverberated in her ears. She saw Kabuto's face register surprise when she dropped into a battle stance. Clearly, he hadn't expected her to fight back. Satisfaction speared through her veins because she at least managed to conquer her fear of defeat if not of death – plus, she was able to wipe off the self-satisfied expression on the Medic-nin's face.

Hinata will not fall without putting up a fight…

A fight she planned to make as hard as possible.

Recovering quickly from the unexpected turn of events, Kabuto smirked again. "So you're not as docile as I took you to be." He also shifted into battle stance. "Very well, I could use the added experience. It would be a pleasure to be able to do combat with a member of the illustrious Hyuuga Clan, if I do say so myself."

Kabuto said this in a tone that implied that he would be honored to fight with anyone in her family, _just not her_.

Hinata caught his implied meaning but refused to take the bait. Pursing her lips, she adjusted her posture to that of the **Hakke Rokujuuyonshou(**2). This technique will allow her to compensate for whatever attack, or projectile for that matter, he would throw at her. Also, it would give her an opportunity to close off any of his tenketsu that's within reach. Hopefully, she will hit the right tenketsu and successfully disable the Chakra Scalpel he was using.

Specifically, Hinata would need to aim for the tenketsu located in his arms. But she won't be picky on whatever she can strike. With enough focus, Kabuto will be lying on the forest floor in a paralyzed heap in no time.

And she didn't plan to miss.

With this thought, she activated her Byakugan. Hinata was already reading Kabuto's internal Chakra Circulation system to somehow be able to predict any move he might make when she noticed dark Chakra emanating from Sasuke. A sense of something she had not felt before, zipped throughout her body. Kabuto probably sensed the change in the atmosphere too because he immediately jumped at an oblique angle, not behind her but far enough so that he could watch both her and Sasuke.

With the help of her Byakugan, Hinata examined Sasuke's Chakra Circulation and was unsettled to see a great mass of dark Chakra spread throughout his body. It was healing the damages made by Kabuto's technique. What was more disquieting was that this stemmed not from the usual center of Chakra but from a black, almost like a void, area on his neck. Hinata deactivated her Byakugan and clearly saw, in color, the outside effects of the crazy amount of Chakra she had seen.

Flaming orange and red marks started to spread rapidly everywhere on his skin that the eye could see. As for Sasuke, his shaking from the pain caused by Kabuto's attack had subsided, and was replaced by the quaking of his shoulders. At first, Hinata thought that the thing on his neck pained him but then she_ felt_ his joy and realized that he was not shivering from pain. No.

He was shaking with mirth, silently laughing.

As the last trace of flame colored marking vanished, leaving black markings on Sasuke's skin, his laughter finally subsided. After a while, Hinata heard him speak. "Did you honestly think that you can hurt me that easily?" He addressed this to Kabuto. "That attack didn't even come close." Now, Hinata knew that he was outright lying. Slowly, he stood up. "So, I guess you wouldn't mind if I try hurting you too." Sasuke lifted his face…

And Hinata couldn't, even if she tried, hold back the gasp that escaped her lips.

Written on Sasuke's face as he leveled a look in Kabuto's direction, was complete and utter cold-blooded _merriment_…and this expression frightened her more than any of his cold looks and heated glares. Dimly, she remembered what her old nursemaid had said about people like Sasuke.

"_Serious people rarely smile because it is not in their nature to do so. However, when they do smile, watch out little one. It could only mean either of two things…_

_That they're extremely happy or…_

Unconsciously, Hinata took a step back.

_Extremely mad."_

As that thought crossed her mind, Kabuto decided that he couldn't wait to be the one attacked and did the attacking instead.

With a burst of speed he had reserved, Kabuto attacked Sasuke with the Chakra no Mesu, thrusting it forward. Sasuke responded by sidestepping away from the attack and giving a swift knee kick on Kabuto's stomach, sending the Medic-nin hurtling backwards a distance away and crashing on a tree. Before the ninja's body even had a chance to slide down the trunk of the tree, Sasuke was on him, punching him relentlessly on the stomach until Hinata was sure he had made a hole in it.

_This is terrifyingly impossible_, Hinata thought, her Byakugan once again activated. All of the Uchiha's attacks were phenomenally faster than before. She was only able to perceive it thanks to her Bloodline Limit, and even then, his movements appeared simply as blurs of Chakra. The white-haired ninja, she could tell, did not excel in rank because of his Taijutsu but because of the many supplementary jutsu he had in his arsenal.

Faced with Sasuke's superior Taijutsu, and now his drastic speed, Kabuto didn't stand a chance.

Horrified by what she was seeing, Hinata could only watch as Sasuke proceeded to pound Kabuto's already battered body, into a bloody heap. If it were anyone else, Hinata was sure they would already be dead, but it was Kabuto and she knew for certain that he was pushing Chakra at the forefront of the muscles in his body to serve as a cushion to soften the blows…somewhat. It's a simple trick all ninjas with medical training knew.

However, if this continues, he wouldn't stay alive for long.

Hinata didn't want Kabuto to die this way. It was true that he did bad things in the past…to her, to her friends, as well as to Konoha…but no ninja deserved to die like this. No ninja deserved to die by the hands of a half-deranged person who probably wasn't even cognizant enough to know what he was doing.

So with a voice she didn't know she possessed, Hinata shouted.

She didn't know what she had said but the sound echoed throughout the forest like some hollow gong. Hinata thought she heard something that sounded like 'stop' but she couldn't be sure.

And it wasn't really important as long as Sasuke halted – hopefully, for good – what he was doing. And he did. His body stood still, mid punch. The silence that ensued was so deafening that dull cricket sounds started humming in Hinata's ears.

She was beginning to think that Sasuke had forgotten about her but then he lowered his fists and slowly faced her, finally letting Kabuto slide down in a broken mass at the base of the tree. He stalked quietly in her direction.

_Maybe it really was 'stop'_, Hinata wondered distantly as she watched Sasuke advance towards her.

He stopped walking when he was an arm's length away from Hinata.

Hinata didn't look at him however and concentrated on the ground. So when his black sandals entered the edge of her vision, she felt a sense of déjà vu(3), but she had no time to ponder on it anymore because he began to speak.

His voice was raspy, like that of one who had just wakened from a long sleep. "Why?" The question caught her off guard so she lifted her face to peer up at him. She was surprised to find that the black markings were gone, leaving his skin looking pale and sickly. His eyes, however, were intense as he stared down at her, seeming to ask the question he had previously spoken.

"Why don't you let me kill him?" He continued.

Does she really need to answer that? Hinata did anyway. "B-because…" She fought to keep her stutter out for she had a feeling it would make all the difference. "Because i-it wouldn't be fair to him."

He barked a cruel chuckle. "Fair? Was he even fair to you?"

True. Kabuto wasn't fair to her, or to anyone for that matter. But she stopped Sasuke from killing the man not only for the man's sake but…

"He wasn't fair to m-me…" Hinata admitted, "B-but letting you k-kill him…wouldn't be fair to you too."

Again, it was true. Sasuke was not himself a while ago, Hinata peered at his feverish gaze that was directed at her, and perhaps he was still not himself now. Killing Kabuto would not have been a free willed act if he went through with it. Although the possibility was doubtful, he may even carry it in his conscience.

And Hinata, in return, couldn't carry it in hers if she had let him kill Kabuto, knowing that she could have done something to prevent it.

Sasuke, for his part, didn't say anything but she saw him lift his hands up. Hinata recoiled instantly and waited for the impact of his fists striking her, eyes shut tight.

Instead, she felt cool fingers touch her cheek. Alarmed, she started to look up but froze instantly when his lips descended on her own.

It was not a passionate kiss…it was pretty one-sided to be categorized as such…

But Hinata felt him communicate something through it. She couldn't say for certain, the message can be a quite number of things.

Vexation…? Possibly. To be honest, it was a rather stupid thing to show mercy for someone who wouldn't have shown the same.

Amusement…? Probably. Looking at it from another angle, it was somewhat odd to see a weak person show mercy for someone much stronger when it should be the other way around. The role-switching was quite funny if one looked at it from a cynical person's point of view.

Gratitude…? Maybe. Well, she did make him show mercy for someone weaker than him. And in a cynical person's point of view, with no role-switching involved, would make sense. Maybe he was thankful to her for giving a good boost to his ego?

But perhaps – Hinata's face heated as another theory crossed her mind, she truthfully didn't know where her thoughts were coming from – he just wanted to kiss her? She gave a mental shake. This guess was the most unlikely of all…

As if to disprove this thought, Hinata felt him nibble briefly at her lower lip. Being inexperienced, Hinata was at a complete loss on how to respond to his ministrations. Or if she _should_ respond.

And it ended before she could.

He pulled away from her. After a moment of silence, he said, "I wouldn't have killed him anyway."

Then he promptly fell forward, unconscious even before Hinata caught him in her arms.

* * *

Hinata sat back and exhaled, her breath puffing out in white wisps. She blew into her shaking hands to drive heat back into them. It was becoming pretty cold as the day gave way to the night. All around her, the forest showed signs of retiring for the night. The leaves on the massive trees whispered a lullaby. Animals started scurrying for shelter and birds gave off last calls…warning against predators that thrive in darkness.

Amidst all these hustle, Hinata felt extremely alone. Here she was, by her lonesome in a forest, surrounded only by trees and animals.

She reclined, slouching as she hugged herself for warmth. Looking at the foot of the large tree in front of her, Hinata amended that she wasn't really alone…

Literally speaking, there _was_ someone with her.

Although for technicalities' sake, that someone didn't count, not if he was dead to the world and probably would remain so for the next 24 hours.

Hinata glanced at the sleeping figure of Sasuke, looking for all the world like a day old corpse. If she hadn't been touching his chest a few seconds ago – _only to heal him_, Hinata blushed – she would have thought so. He was too pale and too severe for his own good. It seemed that these traits were carried over even in his sleep.

A cold draft blew over. Hinata shivered and looked again at Sasuke. Not for the first time, she regretted giving up her warm and comfy jacket to cover his sleeping form. She reckoned that it wouldn't have made a difference if she lent the thing to him or not. Sasuke was as cold as they could get in terms of personality. Hinata doubted if he would feel the cold…not when he was so used to it, it kept showing in his behavior. Maybe she shouldn't have lent her jacket.

But she did. And she was Hinata that way.

Although, she frowned, that doesn't sound like a very good thing at all.

She sounded like a pushover more than anything, even though no one was making any pushing. And that was really the worst part of it.

Hinata slumped back at the cold hard ground, wincing as rocky protrusions poked at her back. Making herself as comfortable as physically possible, she tried to ignore the pain jabbing at her back and concentrated instead on gazing up at the stars dotting the dark sky.

It was not long before her mind drifted off into random things.

Those stars up the corner looked like a belt. The other four, right up her forehead, shaped like a Tempura. All the stars looked so white from her vantage point that they could compare with the white eyes of a Hyuuga…

That thought made her pause.

Sasuke's eyes looked like that of a Hyuuga earlier…She had wondered what was up but then he had blinked and the illusion had vanished before she even thought up any possible answer for it. Or if it had really been there in the first place.

Was she only imagining it? The feeling of staring into her own eyes was too uncanny to have been a mistake…

Hinata's mind slowly drifted again. As she fell asleep, it was replaying all that had happened to her. Being captured and then being freed all by the same person.

The last thought that had lingered in her consciousness as sleep overcame her was the picture of that same person kissing her…Taking away her very first kiss.

* * *

Back at the Ninja Academy in Konoha, young aspiring gennins were thought that a ninja should always be aware off their surroundings, be they awake or sleeping. Hinata had learned this rule when she was still studying at the Academy and then later on relearned it when she was teaching at the Academy as a chuunin.

This rule was easy enough to apply…in theory. It was much, much harder though, to adhere to it on missions, especially when one was exhausted and wounded.

Which was why, when Hinata woke up, she was surprised to notice two things.

One was that the Uchiha wasn't where she left him last night.

Two was that said Uchiha was nowhere to be seen.

Hinata felt dismay and panic grip her heart upon this realization. Dismay because she didn't feel him wake up and leave when she should have. And panic because…

What would become of her now?

She knew she couldn't defend herself if ever Kabuto or _worse_, Orochimaru, came looking for her. This thought was depressing for her morale but she couldn't do anything about it because it was the truth. It was only because of Sasuke that she survived Kabuto's attacks yesterday and now without him…

Hinata's a sitting duck, waiting to be killed, plucked and roasted. She winced.

A thought struck her and she cried out in consternation. He had taken her favorite jacket too…Oh wait, it was still here, _neatly_ folded beside her.

Slowly, she reached out to pluck the material from the ground when Sasuke emerged from the trees. Hinata stopped short, her hands outstretched. Sasuke seemed to become aware of her in this instant and he too paused.

The silence stretched. Hinata wondered why he came back for her or if it was for her really. Perhaps he wants her to perform another healing jutsu? Hinata took in his appearance. He looked a little worse for wear with his dark locks looking more limp than usual and his skin a bit paler too. There were smudges of bluish black under his eyes, a testament of a night's sleep gone badly. The blood stains on his clothes also added to his disheveled exterior.

Hinata reckoned that she didn't look better than him, in fact, if her past experiences were to go by, she should look worse. Maybe that's why he's staring at her like that now?

He frowned so suddenly that Hinata 'eeped', clearly intimidated by his glare. "W-why a-are y-y-y-ou-u…?" She was blushing furiously now, mortified that she couldn't even string a short question together without stuttering horribly.

Sasuke stomped to where Hinata was sitting and grabbed her outstretched arm. "Come on, we're going."

Hinata stumbled as he dragged her up. "W-where…?" He didn't answer but proceeded to pull her along. She worriedly glanced back at her jacket which was still lying on the ground. "W-w-wait m-my…!"

"We're going," he repeated again, glancing back to give her a penetrating glare, "_now_." He emphasized this with a sharp tug.

Hinata wilted under his fierce stare and could do nothing more but to gaze forlornly at the shrinking image of her jacket being left behind(4) as he dragged her away.

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**To be continued…

* * *

**

**A/N: **That was a bit long. Again, for any questions, just mention it in your review and I'll answer it either by PMs or by including it in the next chapter. Thanks for reading!

(1) _Ch-chakra no m-mesu_ – without Hinata's stutter, loosely translated as _Chakra Scalpel_. It was a technique used by Kabuto in his fight with Tsunade if you'll recall. Other than that, the description in the story says it all.

(2) _Hakke Rokujuuyonshou_ –_ Eight Divination Signs, Sixty-Four Palms of the Hand_. This is a technique utilized by the Main House of the Hyuuga Clan, with the exception of Neji of course. If you had seen the manga or at least, the animation series, this is the technique mostly used by Neji in his battle with Naruto in the Chuunin exams.

(3) _she felt a sense of déjà vu_ – Think Chapter 4 – His Reason.

(4) _shrinking image of her jacket being left behind_ – I hope you readers will not get offended but I plan to discard Hinata's bulky clothing once and for all. Reason? Why it's because Sasuke wouldn't have enough motivation to jump her with it on! Fufufufu! (cough,cough…AHEM!) I'm only kidding of course. But seriously, the jacket will play a major role in the story…and I'm pretty sure there's a symbolism there somewhere…hmm…

Again, thanks for reading!

Please review!


	8. Chapter 7 : Endless Rain :

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto.

**Last Time  
**_Sasuke stomped to where Hinata was sitting and grabbed her outstretched arm. "Come on, we're going." _

_Hinata stumbled as he dragged her up. "W-where…?" He didn't answer but proceeded to pull her along. She worriedly glanced back at her jacket which was still lying on the ground. "W-w-wait m-my…!"_

"_We're going," he repeated again, glancing back to give her a penetrating glare, "now." He emphasized this with a sharp tug._

_Hinata wilted under his fierce stare and could do nothing more but to gaze forlornly at the shrinking image of her jacket being left behind as he dragged her away._

* * *

**Pathways**  
Chapter 7  
_Endless Rain_

* * *

__

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Sasuke glanced at the shivering girl beside him once again, feeling the beginnings of a temper tantrum coming on. The fact that the rain wasn't showing signs of letting off only added to his bad humor. But what was really ticking him off was that the prim and proper heiress seemed to be on his case still. Since the beginning of their journey, she had not spoken a single word to him and acted as though he had planned to abduct and have his way with her all along.

He wasn't concerned by the silence at first, heck, he _is_ silence personified. There was a time, Sasuke remembered, when he would be pissed off by girls constantly disturbing him by screeching his name incessantly. Admittedly, having a girl not fawning over him was a welcome – if not pleasant – change. However, he began to realize there really was such a thing as deafening silence. Eventually when he couldn't take it anymore, he had asked Hinata what was wrong ("Are you mute?") to which she had responded by saying that no she wasn't mute and that it was his fault that her jacket was left behind ("N-no, i-it's just that m-my j-jacket…"). What a rude girl…and he had been so delicate about asking her about the whole thing too.

Pfft. All this fuss for an ugly oversized sweater. It was not his intention to leave that piece of work behind, it just _happened_. The thing didn't look good on her anyway.

For a while, he had been able to tolerate the extreme quiet but when the rain started he felt his irritation grow by the second.

It was not long before he began to question if bringing her along was a good idea after all. Maybe he should just dump her off somewhere and let Orochimaru find her?

Sasuke shook his head mentally. That plan wouldn't do at all since if Orochimaru decided to be done with her, he would also be done for.

Again, he had decided that enduring a couple of days with her tedious company was preferable than dying revenge less. And _that_ and only that reason alone was why he was now taking her with him to Lightning Country.

Although he _is_ actually kidnapping her, Sasuke amended, he had not planned it initially. And he can't be accused of wanting to have his way with her (Sasuke glanced at Hinata noticing that she was trying her best to shield her almost transparent front from view – from _his_ view. His stomach tightened and he clenched his jaw), because she was completely _unattractive_. He glanced at her again, noting the great difference in her appearance without her jacket.

_Okay, perhaps the tiniest bit attractive_, Sasuke admitted reluctantly.

Regardless, due to the present circumstances, he would have taken her with him whether she was eye-catching or not.

It had been a while since they hitched a ride in this wagon and a little later since it started raining. He could only guess that she was beginning to feel the bite of the cold without her ugly jacket. Sasuke reclined against the fruit crates and watched Hinata at the corner of his eyes. Like him, she was leaning on the crates but with her arms hugging her drawn knees to her chest.

A minute shiver ran through her. Sasuke knew she was probably bothered by the cold. However, he failed to see where it was a problem of his. His mind was preoccupied with other important things; like keeping her alive for example. Which was the reason, really, why they were now heading to Lightning Country. News of the Akatsuki being there on some business reached him before he left with Hinata from Otogakure.

There was no certainty how long he would last keeping her alive before Orochimaru gets to her. He didn't fear for her safety though. The concern was really for his safety. If she died before he got his revenge...

Sasuke scowled.

He could only hope that the detachment of the Akatsuki will include Itachi, all this trouble would be for nothing if he wasn't there.

Sasuke closed his eyes and let the rain pelt gently on his face. No one else should know of the stupid experiment he had let Orochimaru do to him and the heiress. Specifically, the _side-effects_ it had. The stakes were far too high for him to allow it. He opened his eyes and sneaked another glance at the heiress. That means absolutely _no one_. Not even the Hyuuga heiress herself.

"U-um…"

Sasuke perked up upon hearing the soft voice break through his reverie. He had thought she wasn't speaking to him. "What?" He didn't like how his response was a bit too quick and eager sounding.

"Where a-are we g-going?" She raised her head from her knees and looked at him through her lashes.

Now if it was under any normal circumstance, Sasuke would have told her that it wasn't her business to know (even though it clearly was, since he's dragging her along with him) but he was too glad to have her speaking to him that he didn't really care as of the moment. "To Lightning Country," he had supplied in a cutting tone. After all, even if he was relieved to have someone to talk to, it doesn't mean that he was relieved to feel relieved.

He saw her lips form an 'o' and purse as she once again lowered her face on her knees. She didn't speak again after that but it was clear she was preoccupied with something. He noticed her eyebrows meeting in a slight frown.

He waited for her to elaborate but when it became clear that she wouldn't he felt compelled to ask her. "What?"

He met her pale eyes. After a while, she shifted her gaze elsewhere and spoke carefully. "The…the Hidden Cloud Village…it is – it's in Lightning Country…"

It was a statement that sounded more like a question; a question that she wanted him to confirm.

"What if it is?" She was looking at him again with her disconcertingly white eyes.

"Just th-that…when I was…" she shifted her gaze once more "I…n-nothing. It's nothing."

He knew it wasn't just 'nothing'. She was in the middle of saying something…_important_, he could tell. And lying was not one of her strong suits. Sasuke itched to force her into telling him what it was but held himself back. It wasn't his business after all…just like it wasn't her business to know why they were traveling to Lightning Country.

So instead he said, "I see." But he didn't see. Not really. He knew this and it annoyed him.

The rain was still falling. It poured in sheets.

Sasuke let his head rest back on a crate, feeling the rain pelt his face softly. The sensation reminded him of a distant memory…of coldness and emptiness. He shook himself.

_Gods, how he hated the rain._

* * *

Sasuke stretched his arms up and took the time to survey the surrounding area. Behind him, Hinata was thanking the old couple who gave them a lift on their equally old wagon.

"Just follow this dirt path and you would soon arrive at the nearest village. From there, it would probably take you a day's journey to reach the border of Lightning Country." He heard the old man explain to Hinata.

"We're sorry that we could only take you this far." The old man's wife said.

"No…no…it's quite alright." Hinata replied in a soft voice. He noted it lacked her usual stutter. Bemused, he turned around just as she was giving a bow of thanks. "Thank you for helping us," she said.

The couple bowed their heads in welcome. Finally, the old lady waved. "Well, take care." She looked at him and bestowed the same words, but added, "And watch after your wife. She is such a fragile looking thing." The old woman indicated Hinata's head injury.

"B-b-but…!" The stutter was back and it was back with a vengeance.

"She's not my wife." He had rebutted in a calm voice. After years of listening to Kabuto's innuendos about his and Orochimaru's questionable (and non-existent) relationship, Sasuke learned to take this kind of thing in stride. It was just a simple misunderstanding, nothing to blush about.

The heiress though, was blushing furiously. She held herself rigidly as if being mistaken as his wife was the most preposterous idea she had heard, ever. Inwardly, Sasuke felt a slight pang of hurt but immediately quashed it into non existence.

The couple smiled sheepishly at their obvious mistake, said their farewell and went on their way.

Hinata was still blushing when the old wooden wagon disappeared from sight. Sasuke sighed and turned his back on her. "Come on." He began walking in the opposite direction.

It was a while before he heard her catch up to him. He kept their pace slow since they didn't need to hurry. The village the old couple spoke of was only a few minutes away, he could tell by the numerous chakra signatures he detected coming from afar.

The short trip was silent and uneventful until he stopped just outside the vicinity of the small village. He turned his head a bit to look at the Hyuuga heiress. By now, the blush she was sporting just a while ago was completely gone, leaving her complexion as pale as ever.

He studied her. She definitely will attract some unnecessary attention what with her attire; a fishnet shirt lined with black cloth to cover her chest. Dimly, he wondered if leaving her ugly jacket was a good idea after all. They will only stay for one night so it probably wasn't such a big deal. However…

"Hey," he prompted, causing her to look at him in surprise. She was obviously lost in her own thoughts.

Slowly, Sasuke lifted a finger and pointed at her. "Take that off."

Her eyes widened in disbelief. She brought her arms in front of her, as if too shield her body from his view, "W-what a-are you…w-why?!" He lifted an eyebrow at her palpable outrage.

Well well well…the girl had spunk after all. Who would have thought? "W-why would I…f-follow you?!" Though she could definitely do without the stutter.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. He had no time for this. Deliberately, he stepped towards her and watched in a mixture of annoyance and amusement as the Hyuuga heiress backed herself to a tree.

_Foolish, really._

White eyes widened further as he closed the distance between them by a foot. "I don't understand you at all." He said as he reached out both hands to either side of her head, effectively trapping her with his body. "What are you so afraid of?"

Her face was beginning to flush again and he saw her eyes close. "P-please…d-don't…" she whispered in a breathy voice.

Something in him shifted with the way she spoke but he couldn't identify what it was. So he ignored it and inched his hand closer and cupped her cheeks. He felt her flinch at the contact and he smirked. Gently, he ran his fingers down her face in a light caress, and then slid them softly to her smooth neck.

Her breath hitched and Sasuke felt himself mirroring the action. He caressed her skin once more and her breath hitched again. He could only watch in fascination as a fresh wave of blush started spreading from down her neck up to her face.

It was…strange. "Hey…" he softly said. Large overly bright eyes opened, giving him a distinct impression that she was going to burst into tears any minute. She opened and closed her lips a few times but no words came out. Sasuke found his eyes pulled to them. Odd, he hadn't noticed how very pink they were before…and lush. They called to him and made his mind sluggish, unable to process what he was feeling…why he was feeling like _this_.

"P-please…" she whispered again in the same breathy manner. Sasuke found himself preoccupied with slowly closing the distance between him and those lips that he barely heard her. "P-please…don't."

_Don't._ The word echoed inside his head as her pulse thundered beneath his fingertips. It beat a loud staccato, in time with the rhythm of his heart…

And triggered a memory he wished to never recall.

Of a time he was weak and he felt most afraid, for his life and for his family's. He had never pleaded to someone as much as he had then. And his heart had never drummed so loudly that it was the only thing he heard.

That is, until now.

Sasuke immediately drew back, his hands feeling like they'd been burned. What was he thinking? This was madness. He clenched his hands and paused. Confused, he brought his hand up and saw a familiar fabric clutched tightly in it.

_Her hitai-ate._

He had forgotten he had meant to take it off before he got a little…_sidetracked._

At least, he had an excuse. In a low voice, so to hide the tremor in it, he said, "Exactly what did you think am I going to do?" Sasuke stepped back and once again put some distance between them.

The heiress looked up. In a daze, she lifted her hands up to her neck and blinked.

Sasuke leered at her. "You didn't think I would undress you, did you?" He held up his hand and showed her what he held there. "You have such a dirty mind, Hyuuga."

At this, he watched in fascination as she worked herself up into a tizzy of blushes and stutters. "I-I'm s-sorry…I…" she worried her bottom lip.

It was his complete undoing, but the action served to bring his attention to her mouth again. Angry, at his own reaction, he abruptly turned around and glared intensely at a tree. "Forget it. Anyway, we couldn't let them know you're from Konoha." _Like I was. _

Silence met him and he glanced back to look at her.

She was looking at him again with her unnerving white eyes, as if she could read his mind and soul by just doing so…As if she was trying to tell him something. And the weird thing was, he could almost hear what she was thinking, it was there, echoing his own sentiments.

_Like you were…_

He froze in mild shock but didn't know why. She was still looking at him with her big white eyes and then tore her gaze away to look at her feet.

_But it was a long time ago._

* * *

It was not uncommon to be mistaken as such, Sasuke reasoned with himself. People, especially complete strangers, take everything they see at face value.

For instance, if they see two boys constantly arguing with each other and then sleeping in the same place, they immediately think that one or both were…_well_. Not stopping to think that said boys were teammates and have no say where they would sleep.

Or if they see a slimy and possibly crazy person hunger for a young boy's body, they hastily jump to conclusion that said slimy person was a pedophile. Not taking into consideration that perhaps said crazy person was a power-hungry, immortality craving egomaniac that was in love with nobody but himself.

In retrospect, thusly, when a young man and young woman travel together, people would instantly think that they are husband and wife. Or of intimate relations…short of being brother and sister. But the fact that they looked nothing like each other – except for the hair color, which wasn't much – that possibility of being brother and sister was quickly discarded out the window.

So once again being mistaken as married didn't do much to ruffle Sasuke's feathers.

When they arrived at the village, he instantly _felt_ the villagers' tongues wagging. But this wasn't a surprise to him. He had even expected it and thought that it was good that he removed the Hyuuga's hitai-ate beforehand.

In terms of size and population, the village wasn't much to shout about. He doubted that travelers go this far out since the path he had chosen for their journey was the least popular of all routes. Sasuke reckoned that this village rarely saw visitors so it was a safe bet that news of the two of them crossing here wouldn't spread.

It seemed that there was no need for him to dispose of them after all.

Nevertheless…

This inn keeper was really pushing it.

"I told you, we are going to pay." Sasuke snarled menacingly. Hinata fidgeted uncomfortably behind him.

The bald man that was the inn keeper mirrored her. "Umm…well that's not the problem see, 'cause there're just two rooms, see? And you and your wife happened to come in at the most inopportune times, see?"

Sasuke ignored the comment about the Hyuuga being his wife; he just couldn't be bothered anymore. "Inopportune of times? What the hell are you talking about?" He growled. "This goddamn village doesn't even get visitors!" He was shouting at the end. Gods, he hated it when he lost his cool.

"Yes, well, see, that's the problem. See, this inn's practically out of commission because no one ever comes in this village…see?" The inn keeper explained.

"I fail to _see_ how that concerns us. You just said there are two rooms." Sasuke said, reigning in his temper. "Give us the rooms." He ordered.

"See, that's where the second problem comes in. I said there are two rooms, but I didn't say that both are available see?" The man said, scratching his bald head. "Maybe you and your wife would want to try the other tavern down by the roadside? It's a little further from the village, see?"

Why do they even bother to put up a sign? Sasuke wondered. Very well, he smirked as he fisted his hand and pulled back for a blow, just for putting him into this _wasted effort_ (so to speak).

Sasuke watched in satisfaction as the man recoiled from the impending blow. But before his fist even made contact, it froze a hairbreadth from the inn keeper's face when Hinata brought her cool hands to that of his own.

Bemused, he looked at her. She was blushing (yet again) and was shaking her head tiredly. "P-please…" she said and then turned her attention to the cowering inn keeper, "please show us…the way to t-the tavern you spoke of."

Glad to have Sasuke's wrath removed from his person, the man was only too happy to oblige. "Yes, yes! It's this way, see. Follow me!" and then he went scampering out.

Sasuke watched the man go outside and then directed his attention back to the Hyuuga who was moving to follow the man. He grabbed her arm, effectively stopping her.

She looked back, surprise written on her face. "U-uchiha…s-san?"

Sasuke pulled her arm towards him and stared her down, his face only several inches from his own. He was about to give her a piece of his mind for interfering when she suddenly scrunched her face and sneezed.

Violently.

The words died on his tongue. Vaguely, it crossed his mind that it was a good thing that she didn't sneeze directly unto his face.

She was impersonating a tomato again and looked so embarrassed that he felt his irritation dissipate. Her expression was endearing in a way.

A weird way.

"I-I'm s-so s-sorry!" She gasped.

Sasuke sighed. "Let's just go." He said in a resigned voice, feeling tired as well.

The rain was pouring again when he stepped outside of the inn. A light sniffle alerted him that Hinata wasn't far behind as he made his way to the waving innkeeper.

"This way!" The man motioned and scurried away.

Sasuke made to follow when a dull thud sounded right behind. What is the stupid Hyuuga up to now? He thought, still smarting that she was able to stop him from punching the man earlier. Sasuke glanced back, prepared to give a proper telling to when he stopped short.

There lying on the ground, mud coating the edges of her shirt and hair, lay Hinata.

She was unconscious.

* * *

Sasuke found himself heaving a tired sigh as he got Hinata settled on a futon. The water from her clothes and hair permeated the mattress almost immediately and the bandage on her head was soaked.

"Is the accommodations to your liking?" the previous innkeeper asked from the shoji. With him was the lady (a thirty-some woman if he had to guess) that owned the place. Her sharp eyes were not looking at him but focused on Hinata's prone from. She had a look about her that he didn't quite like. If he was by himself, he would travel on (sleep on a tree branch, perhaps) but he had Hinata with him…a very sick Hinata.

So instead of leaving, like he wanted to do, he had to stay. He would just have to be a bit vigilant. "There's no other choice now is there?" he glared.

At his irritated question, the innkeeper from earlier retreated immediately and was gone in an eye blink. "No, of course not." It was the woman who replied. "I'm Soshono. Is there anything else you'll need? For your wife maybe?"

Sasuke didn't feel the need to correct her. Leaning over, he touched Hinata's forehead and felt ice. "Hot water and dry towels."

Soshono didn't reply. He heard the shoji clicking shut and her footsteps as she receded down the hallway.

Hearing the last of her footsteps disappear, Sasuke turned his attention once again to Hinata. Hesitantly, he touched her cheek gently and felt how cold and clammy her skin was. Maybe it was just his hands being wet from the rain outside but he was sure that a fever should feel hot and not cold.

Sasuke sat there for a few moments deep in thought when he heard a light knock and the shoji sliding open. Then a voice, "Here are the towels and a bowl of hot water you requested."

He turned and saw Soshono there, about to close the door. When she looked up for the last time through the slit on the doorway, he nodded at her. The shoji slid shut once more.

Sasuke settled down again beside the futon after getting up to retrieve the items. There were several dry towels plus the hot water. Creepy though the woman Soshono may be, she was thorough; he had to give her that. She even added in a dry yukata.

Although, he wasn't sure if the heiress would much appreciate it if he was to undress her. He paused…Pah, what she doesn't know won't harm her.

_Right._

First the bandage had to go, so he drew his kunai from its holster and carefully cut the bandage wrapped around Hinata's head. After that, he quickly peeled off her wet clothing (and tried not to look at her too much) and just as efficiently sponged her with hot water then toweled her dry. It wasn't until Hinata gave a moan of pain that he realized he had been scrubbing at her skin too hard.

Feeling a little foolish (and sheepish, but he wouldn't admit that out loud), he replaced her wet clothing with the yukata, being careful this time.

Finally, his tasks done, he settled back once again beside the futon. He reached out and placed his palm against her forehead once more and felt her skin beginning to warm over.

Too warm.

Well, she had fever after all. That would explain her sluggish behavior earlier, as well as the over bright eyes and flushed skin. She wasn't just blushing after all.

Sasuke supposed he should feel a little guilty. He was the one who forced the two of them to travel even with the relentless rain falling on their heads…and she possibly wouldn't have been this sick if he hadn't compelled her to leave her jacket behind.

Hn. There's nothing much he could do now about her fever, however. He considered asking the woman – what was her name again…? Ah, Soshono – he considered asking her for some medicine but something about her unsettled him. Another was that he didn't trust her enough not to poison the Hyuuga.

_Not_ that he cared or anything it's just that if something happened to her…_well_, then something would happen to him too. That prospect didn't score much with him.

In the end, he resigned himself to watching over her.

* * *

It was in the middle of the night that he heard a voice inside the room. The constant pitter patter of the rain outside made it nearly impossible for him to notice it but…

"Ooo…" _there it was._

Slowly, Sasuke straightened from his reclined position against the walls and listened. Without consciously doing so, his Sharingan activated…however, there wasn't any chakra signature anywhere.

"Ooo…" Sasuke strained to hear some more "kaa…sama…" Wait. That voice belonged to the Hyuuga. It sounded just a tad hoarse but it was unmistakably hers.

_She's having a dream. About her mother._

Sighing, he reclaimed his previous position and closed his eyes, waiting for sleep to visit him again.

"Kaa-sama…love you…" Hinata murmured in her sleep.

Before he slipped off to sleep, Sasuke wondered when he had told his mother he loved her…Or if he had ever told her at all. The thought filled him with deep regret.

.

.

.

.

**To be Continued**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Okay, this chapter was a long time coming and I'm sorry for the delay but I've been in a fix lately and suffered a lot from writer's block. Don't get me wrong though, I'm not planning to abandon this story, it's just that I have so many things I want to do with it that I can't seem to know where to start writing…Or what to write for that matter. It ended with me doing my most favorite hobby (aside from writing), that's right, procrastinating. I've put doing away with this chapter for so long that I nearly forgot what I wanted to write. This would explain the lack of the usual notes on the bottom. Maybe I'll get back to adding them again once I feel the need for it.

This chapter's a bit self-explanatory so I don't think you folks will miss the footnotes but if ever, feel free to ask me and I'll answer by way of PMs or by including it in the next chapter.

On another note, this has not been beta-read yet so if you find mistakes, I apologize. You have to understand though that piecing the sentences together the first time was tough work for me since I don't speak English at the onset. I really have to work the cogs in my brain to think of the story in English. It's a pain thinking if this or that grammar goes okay with this or that. More so if I have to look and find my own mistakes.

So…I guess that's that. Much thanks to those who reviewed last time:

**Name's just a word** – I think he's just being his normal self…you know, same 'ol angsty Sasuke. Though if I may add, he's just angry that he has no other choice than to take Hinata with him cause snakey's out to get her.

**oztan** – I agree. Thanks for reviewing!

**Kawaii Kyuubi-chan** – Hmm, I don't think the other girls in Naruto will appreciate it if we make all the boys lust after cute Hinata, but that's a thought. Thanks for the review!

**M-dono** – Oh, hohoho! WE are both evil! But I don't think we could proceed as planned and still keep the T rating of the story. Anyway, thanks for that lively review!

**neon flux** – Well, still ever so chatty, I see. Your remarks are really funny (as always), and your requests impossible (as always) but I know you're just joking (as always) so I'll just let it pass (as always)…JOKE! SERIOUSLY though…maraming T.Y. sa 'yo sa pag-review, dahil alam ko na marami kang ginagawa at malalaki ang units ng mga subjects mo. Ayan, I updated, so I hope you'll stop bugging me about it everytime you call on the phone (which was much appreciated, mind you).

**Neophyte Serendipity** – I SO know who YOU are…

**Akizichi****-Jigoku Shoujo** – Your review was…_is_ a very good motivator for me. I thank you for the constructive criticism. I appreciate it so much that I've tried making the story faster and less detailed – well, less detailed that I could make it. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

**NanamiYatsumaki** – Thanks!

**fried ryce** – Really? Thank you! I spend hours thinking of how to voice Sasuke's thoughts. Many times, I've thought to just make the whole story on Hinata's perspective but there wouldn't be too much heart in the story if only Hinata's perspective is in play. Your questions were answered in this chapter but you have to really be on guard to be able to spot it. Also, the effect of the Blood Synthesis on Sasuke was shown in the last chapter (again, it is difficult to spot). As the story progresses though, I think this secret effect (so to speak) will become clearer. And NO, Hinata will not get the short end of the deal, not if I've got anything to say (or write) about it! Thanks for the review!

**kenshinlover2002** – You reviewed again, yey! I hope this chapter answers your question. Thanks for the review!

**munky5** – Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. So sorry that I updated so late.

**Draonheart0000** – Don't worry, I will continue! Fight!

**italicized** – No, really, I'm not. I'm naturalized in the Philippines so I speak Filipino (yes, Filipino is the Philippines' national language and NOT Tagalog as is commonly circulated in the net). Anyway, don't say the things you write are stupid! You wrote them so they must mean something special! Did you know that in the University I go to, we have to study Chinese and Spanish? And boy, are they hard to learn! You're lucky you can speak both languages!

**Encuentrame** – Hear hear! You pretty much summed up the 'hidden' symbolism in it. Though if I may add; leaving the jacket behind signifies the end of the life she had known and the start of another journey she will make. Thanks for the review! I appreciate how you took the time to mull over that symbolism.

**shinee-pebbles** – There is a reason as Encuentrame deduced. But oh (blushes), I haven't thought if it's for anything sexual in nature (giggles maniacally). No really, I swear!

**Hinata6** – Neji will definitely make an appearance although I'm not sure if it's in the next chapter or the one after that. Naruto, thoughit's too early to say, will probably not make another appearance. As to a little jealousy, there wouldn't be excitement without it so definitely, there will be some. Thanks for reviewing!

**Domino** – Thank you, I'm flattered! I'm glad you think it's well thought out because I've spent sleepless nights just thinking how the pieces all went together without sounding to been-there-done-that. I suppose we're all tired of clichés involving this couple.

**brokenAngel89** – This chapter answers your questions. I'm so happy you like my descriptions!

**DemonicAuthor05** – Thanks for reviewing!

**Kiko cat** – Neji will turn up, absolutely.

**rebel of life** – Hinata will get her moment, wait and see. Thanks for the review!

**Miyuki-chan** – Thanks!

**NocturneD** – (waves thank you flag)

**then nika said** – Thank you!

Please review!


	9. Chapter 8 : Precipitation :

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto.

**Last Time**

_His mind was preoccupied with other important things; like keeping her alive for example. Which was the reason, really, why they were now heading to Lightning Country.  
_…  
_Sasuke glanced back, prepared to give a proper telling to when he stopped short. There lying on the ground, mud coating the edges of her shirt and hair, lay Hinata. She was unconscious.  
_…  
_With him was the lady that owned the place. Her sharp eyes were not looking at him but focused on Hinata's prone from. She had a look about her that he didn't quite like. If he was by himself, he would travel on but he had Hinata with him…a very sick Hinata.  
_…  
_Before he slipped off to sleep, Sasuke wondered when he had told his mother he loved her…Or if he had ever told her at all. The thought filled him with deep regret._

_

* * *

_  
**Pathways**  
Chapter 8  
_Precipitation_

* * *

Hinata knew she was sick. The burning sensation permeating her entire body could be nothing if not a fever. A telltale sign, too, was the dryness of her throat, as if she had been screaming herself hoarse for hours.

She knew she was laying on a futon. Ever since she had been captured, her back hadn't felt as comfortable as it did now. The last time her body felt relaxed was when she last slept on a real mattress. Well, she felt relaxed now, so that could only mean she was resting on one.

Hinata also knew someone was taking care of her, coaxing her fever to go down. But she didn't know who was doing it.

She could feel a rough cool hand gently sweeping her bangs away then a cool cloth settling over her forehead. It relieved the fire burning on her face somewhat. The coolness of the hand drifted over to her cheek, cupping it. With a moan of relief, she pressed her face further into it, seeking comfort from the intense heat she was feeling.

Immediately the hand retreated. Confused, Hinata slowly opened her feverish eyes and saw a figure moving back. Later, she would realize the figure to be Sasuke's.

* * *

It was some time before Hinata opened her eyes again. This time, however, the burning of her body had lessened to some extent.

She remembered a figure from earlier, then there was Sasuke's voice telling her to drink. Hinata can't recall if she did obey him but she probably had since her throat no longer felt dry and scratchy.

Slowly, she swept her eyes throughout the room. It was small and sparsely decorated but she supposed that maybe all inns were designed like this. Hinata didn't have anything for comparisons sake since she had never slept at an inn before.

Well, she had been out on missions but those never included sleeping in rooms, much less sleeping at inns. During most assignments, she slept outside with her designated team, camping; or never at all. Her rank as Chuunin granted her with missions that lasted only for a short time so there was little need to stay at a hostelry.

Back when she was a Genin, her team was rarely assigned missions that allowed them more than a week outside of Konoha(1). Of course, they were always with their team instructor and it must be said that Kurenai-sensei had very small respect for inns. Hinata just didn't know why.

Her eyes roamed around the room once more, taking in every detail, until her eyes landed on Sasuke's form (at least she thought it was him, she couldn't really tell since it was dark), reclined against the wall and most likely sleeping. But then, one couldn't truly tell with Sasuke because for all she knew, he probably doesn't sleep at all. The first and last time she had seen him with his eyes closed was back when he fell unconscious right after stealing a kiss from her.

Hinata eeped silently, her cheeks flaming but not because of her fever this time. The memory of his kiss stirred something in her and made butterflies dance in her stomach. The sensations were too soon after her fever had just gone down and she felt sick all over again. Feeling a bit dizzy and nauseous, she desperately tried to push the memory away. Closing her eyes, she tried to call back sleep once more.

* * *

The first thing Hinata had been aware of the moment her eyes opened for the third time that night was the rain's relentless pattering sound. Unlike earlier, she felt that her fever had come again in full force. Slowly, she made to sit up but stopped when her eyes fell on the corner where Sasuke was…

Or should have been.

Slightly more awake, Hinata looked about the room but saw no sign of him anywhere. Sitting up more fully, a slight coldness touched her chest. She looked down on herself and was surprised that instead of her clothes, she was wearing a yukata which was gaping open on the middle. Hastily, she clutched it closed.

She spotted her clothes on a rack, hanging to dry. Sasuke must have changed her wet clothes. Acute embarrassment followed through the thought. He could have done it out of goodwill but she still… _D-did he see anything?_ Hinata wondered in panic, warmth blossoming from her chest and spreading up to her face, adding color to her already flushed face.

Hinata would have worried over it more had a loud crash not sounded outside the room. She started, her Byakugan activating almost instantly.

She scanned the surrounding area, taking note that the room she was in was only one of six rooms in the place. There was a straight corridor leading to each room. At the end of it was a sort of reception room with a small door to the side. Inside of it were two chakra systems, both were working furiously, chakra circulating in a speed it only did when the body was exerting itself.

There were two persons fighting just a little ways from her. One of them, Hinata realized, was Sasuke. His chakra system had that distinct power source coming from the black void on the junction between his neck and shoulder, it was pretty hard to miss…_and forget_.

What was happening? Who was he fighting? Was it Orochimaru? These thoughts ran crazily around Hinata's mind, making her head throb. She wanted to vomit and felt really sick, fear and confusion rubbing salt to her already stinging wounds.

Woozy, she stood up and changed to her usual clothes. Vaguely, a part of her mind that wasn't her at all was screaming _"what are you doing?!"_ but the larger part – the one that felt her fears, her joys, even her fever…the part that made her Hinata – whispered _"I'm going to help him"_.

The fact that she was still sick almost completely forgotten, she acted on this whisper. Hinata opened the shoji and raced through the corridor, past the many other closed shoji's, and into the lobby.

She stopped at the middle of the room to catch her breath. Calling upon her bloodline limit, Hinata once again scanned the little room connected to the lobby but saw nothing.

No chakra. Nothing.

She wondered what had happened between the time she saw Sasuke fighting and the time it had taken her to get here. The run had jogged her quite a bit, causing her head to ache. It taxed her to keep her Byakugan working so she deactivated it. Sluggishly, with her vision swimming, she approached the door and pushed it open. It creaked loudly in the silence.

Hinata was only able to take a small step when lightning outside illuminated the dark room. The flash was brief but in that short span of time, it was sufficient for her to see what was inside. And the sight made her freeze.

There, lying in the middle of the room was the body of a woman…Eyes open but unseeing. At her side stood Sasuke's figure, looking down at the woman, completely unmoved(2).

The room was plunged again in darkness. Hinata gasped out loud, both because of what she saw and the stifling blackness that surrounded her. She was aware of her own pounding heartbeat and the shaking of her hands that were clutched tightly in front of her chest. The rapid pounding of it made her fever all the more worse.

Another streak of lightning flashed outside, again lighting the room up. Her breath snagged. Sasuke was looking at her now, his face unreadable. Hinata saw him make a move towards her…

But she saw no more after that.

* * *

Hinata awoke to warmth on her front and a curious gentle rhythm. Opening her eyes, she was confronted with dark longish hair that stuck up on the top. She raised her head from where it was resting and blinked her tired eyes several times to focus her vision.

The head of hair, she deduced, belonged to Sasuke. The gentle rhythm she was experiencing was his gait as he walked. They were traveling on a dirt path in a forested area and he was carrying her on his back.

Her arms were snug around his neck, her breasts pressed up against his back and – Hinata blushed – his hands were gripping her legs, holding her to him. She felt her breath hitch in her throat.

His pace paused briefly upon hearing her little display of embarrassment, but continued on again as if nothing happened.

Now he probably knew she was awake. Really, Hinata saw no big deal about him carrying her. Kiba and Shino did that to her all the time and she never felt embarrassed.

So why feel like it now?

_Maybe_, the part of Hinata's mind that wasn't her at all whispered mischievously, _because it was him and not Kiba and Shino?_ Hinata's face flamed anew.

_Uchiha-san is Uchiha-san! _The part that was Hinata declared. _He's just like Kiba-kun and Shino-kun!_

The part who first made its presence known spoke again, _Hmm, well then why don't you blush when they carry you?_ At the lack of response, it giggled and said, _You certainly do that a lot when you're around him._ Then it fell silent.

When it appeared that it wouldn't speak again, Hinata relaxed. _Mou…_she pouted, she seriously didn't know where these thoughts were coming from. And since when did she have a split personality? This was really weird.

Sasuke must have felt the on and off tensing of her body because unexpectedly, he asked "Is your fever coming back? You don't feel warm." He stated.

Momentarily surprised that he initiated a conversation without insulting her, Hinata had been unable to formulate a proper response. She shook her head no but then realized that he wouldn't see it so she squeaked a soft, "N-no."

He didn't appear to have heard her so she said a bit louder, "No."

Sasuke tilted his head slightly to her direction, the only indication he gave that he had heard her. There were no words, he just continued looking straight ahead, walking on.

Hinata was contented to leave it at that but then she remembered last night. Of lightning and a small room…of a woman and Sasuke's emotionless face…and then…

And then what? She can't remember. Curious, and maybe a little confused, she asked, "What happened?"

"You fell unconscious," was his simple reply, but Hinata knew that already. And it didn't answer her question.

Hinata nodded faintly, her chin bumping his shoulder as she did so. "I saw a woman…" she started uncertainly, willing him to answer from there. Yes, she recalled a woman lying on the floor but wasn't sure if she was dead. There was also fighting, she remembered.

"Aa…" he was silent for a long time and then, "she's dead." He continued, apathetically.

Having already anticipated this kind of answer, Hinata couldn't say that she was _that_ surprised…well, maybe a _little_ bit. "Why?" she said in a soft voice.

Again, he took his time in replying. He glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. "I killed her."

Hinata closed her eyes. He sure didn't mince words. "Why?" she asked again, more determinedly.

"She tried to kill me, so I killed her first," was his succinct reply. Once more, he failed to answer in the way she would have wanted.

He said the woman tried to kill him, but didn't clarify why she had wanted to do so.

It seemed he wasn't willing to impart further information so Hinata decided to stop trying. She might as well be talking to a brick wall for all the cooperation he was showing.

The sun was slowly making its way up the sky until it was almost noon. Hinata was beginning to dose on his back, his slow gait lulling her to sleep, when he spoke suddenly, his voice reverberating through his body and into her. Sleepily, she tried to pay attention.

"I know what happened back then." He said, sounding so sure of himself.

Those words managed to catch her attention.

"B-back then? About w-what?" she dumbly echoed, although something was whispering in the back of her mind, a warning or a cry for help, she couldn't tell. She felt like she was floundering again, even if he was holding her legs firmly against his sides.

"The attempts of the Hidden Cloud Village to get your Byakugan. I know of it." he stated tersely, in a low tone.

Hinata sucked in a breath. How could he know? No one outside the Sandaime and the Hyuuga clan knows of what happened years ago. So how? Was it…? "D-did that woman t-tell you?" she stammered.

"She did," he confirmed bluntly.

So that was the reason she had wanted to kill Sasuke? Maybe she had planned to kill him first then get to her, stealing her Byakugan…her eyes. Is she an accomplice of the Cloud village? They had thought that that village had given up on their desire to acquire their clan's secret. Apparently, they were wrong. The Cloud village was probably only biding their time. And now, Hinata was walking freely into their domain.

Hinata sucked in a breath sharply, the memory of that horrible night coming back to her in a rush. That event had rocked the foundations that held the Hyuuga Clan intact and consequently resulted in chaos and mistrust within it. And…

It reminded her of Neji-niisan's anger at the fate that befell his father. How he sought to inflict that anger on her…and his sincere apology afterwards. Neji became her most trusted confidant and friend from then on, probably the only good that came out of that terrible ordeal.

But now, it's as if the demons of the past were catching up to her and she could never really escape.

Her heart beat painfully within her chest.

She would forever carry the testament of her clan's folly. Hinata could now only wonder what wounds she may have to bear this time around, if ever the plans against the Byakugan come to pass.

These thoughts swirled around her head. She shuddered and unconsciously tightened her arms around his neck, suddenly feeling very weak and frightened.

"I…I'm afraid…" she whispered against his neck, the intimacy lost on her in the face of her fear. She also missed the tremble that ran through his frame upon her doing so.

He was quiet for a moment but seemed to come upon a decision when he replied, "Don't be." His hands tightened minutely on her legs. "I'll protect your eyes. Don't dwell more on it."

He didn't speak again after that.

She heard him say that he would protect her eyes, _not Hinata_, but his words still reassured her…For how could he protect her eyes if he didn't also protect her? Perhaps it was his way of saying that she would be safe traveling with him…? Which would make sense because somehow, she couldn't imagine him ever saying he would protect someone…at least, not directly.

Feeling herself smile genuinely for the first time since she got captured, Hinata rested her head on Sasuke's shoulder. The irony of the situation didn't escape her.

Here she was, being protected by the person who had threatened to kill her several times, the very same person who had captured her and the reason why she was in this mess in the first place.

Strangely, Hinata found she didn't really mind the whole ordeal at all.

* * *

A dull crack resounded around the clearing as his kunai made contact with the tree trunk. He looked down at the part of the trunk with smudges of dried brown blood on it and cursed loudly.

He was back where he had started. "Damn it!"

"Umm…" a tiny uncertain voice piped in, "can I go now?"

Startled, he looked at the small man who had accompanied him at the clearing. He had forgotten the merchant was there with him.

Trying to reign in his frustration, he replied coolly, "Yes. You may go," then almost as an after thought, "thank you for granting me a little of your time."

The man scratched his neck, obviously embarrassed. "You're quite welcome. Well, I'll be off then."

He watched the merchant walk away for a while and was again concentrating on the tree trunk behind him when he remembered about the thing he held in his hand. "Wait." He called sharply, loud enough for the merchant to hear. "Can I keep this?" He held up his hand.

The man turned around and nodded his approval. "Go ahead. It's not mine to sell anyway." With that, and a final nod, the man was gone.

Slowly, he turned around and faced the tree trunk, contemplating the blood stains on it. He glanced down at the thing clutched on his left hand and then back again at the tree. "Could this belong to you too?" he asked no one in particular.

There was no forthcoming answer.

Frustrated, he tore of the mask that covered his face and glared at the bloodstains, white eyes flashing.

To say that Neji was angry would be an understatement. He was downright pissed and felt ready to hate anything as of the moment.

Particularly, he wanted to hate himself real bad but couldn't because he was his only ally right now. Hating himself would only slow him down and he had already lost a lot of precious time for following a false lead.

Neji gritted his teeth. He couldn't believe how incredibly foolish he was.

Three days ago, he had come upon a village – a ghost town really, for all the life it showed. A little ways from it, he had found this clearing…which showed signs of a recent battle. The ground was charred oddly in one place, as if the fire that scorched it split in half. Then there was this tree and its bloodied trunk.

And then he had found her jacket. Or…

To be more precise, he had found trails from this area that led to the nearest town – which was a day's journey from here. He had spent a day following the track. At the town, it took him half a day to look for his quarry only to find that he had been following a false trace.

The trails he had scented belonged to a traveling merchant who happened to come upon the same clearing days earlier from him. Neji would have gone mad from sheer frustration had the merchant not shown him the thing the latter had picked up from the clearing.

"Hinata-sama…" Neji whispered in an almost bleak manner. "Your jacket was found here…but where are you?"

* * *

Hinata tried not to look as nervous as she was feeling at that very instant. She felt that she owed Sasuke this much since he had carried her a good distance until her fever died down. But she couldn't seem to stop herself from fidgeting nervously. Hinata worried her lip.

This would have been a lot easier if he wasn't intensely staring at her across the small fire he had made to cook the fish he caught. At first, Hinata thought that he was going to ask her a question since he had slightly opened his mouth. Then he seemed to change his mind and instead started looking intently at her.

To Hinata, the nerve wracking stare felt like it would go on forever. The silence stretched…

And then, "I don't know what your name is." He suddenly announced. It was not a question. And although his voice was as stoic as voices could get, Hinata could not have stopped her startled reaction. Whether it was surprise from having the silence broken or surprise from his statement, she didn't know.

"Y-you don't know my n-name?" she replied intelligently.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Are you going to repeat everything I'll say?"

"Am I g-going to -- ?" Hinata blinked and then shook her head no.

"Well?" he prompted gruffly. "Unless you want me to keep calling you 'Hyuuga' in Cloud territory…it's your pick."

Hinata blinked again. It made sense, really, that even after a week of traveling together, he still didn't know her name. Especially when he didn't give any indication that he knew it in the first place. Up till now, he only ever called her 'Hyuuga' and then some. They came from the same village but then, she had never spoken to him personally – she never felt the need to. And perhaps, she was too insignificant for him to notice her, not with so many girls vying for his attention. Thinking back, Hinata could have cared less if he knew her name or not but now, she felt it was rather insulting that he didn't even know her name.

On the other hand, she guessed this was just typical of the aloof Uchiha, to kidnap and take the first kiss of someone and not know her name.

And now, Kami was giving her a chance to introduce herself properly to him. This time around, she would make sure that he will know her name and never forget it. "It's Hinata." She stated with more conviction than she actually felt.

It was probably the first time he heard her speak like that because his eyes widened minutely, the only sign that he was surprised. "Hn…" he closed his eyes, "it fits you."

Hinata couldn't believe it. Her fever must be returning (surreptitiously she felt her neck, _nope no fever_). Was he _really_ giving her a compliment?

"It's a weak name," he leaned forward, checked if the fish was ready, took one and offered it to her, "just like you." He said in a manner more befitting when one announces the weather.

Alright...it was _not_ a compliment. Uncertainly, Hinata took the proffered fish. "Umm…" What could she say? It wasn't everyday that she got told that her name was weak. On the contrary, she rather thought that it was a pretty name; her mother had given it to her after all. And it wasn't like his name was that great either. Hinata thought so.

_And your name suits you as well…it's completely unoriginal, just like you_, she wanted to say but was unsure if he would take kindly to having his _little_ insult thrown right back at him.

Plus, his name was also probably given to him by his mother. Hinata didn't like to insult his mother's memory by insulting his name even if he did just that to _her own_ mother.

"What? Is your fever coming back again?" He sounded irritated. She must have been staring at him the whole while.

She shook her head. "W-will we be arriving at C-cloud territory tomorrow?" Hinata asked to change the subject and because she honestly wanted to find out. It was a dreadful feeling, knowing what will happen and yet not being able to do anything about it.

"Yes, we will be arriving there at midday." He replied.

"Can I ask w-why we need to go there?" Seriously, this really bothered her. They could go somewhere less dangerous (at least for her anyway) so why Cloud Village?

Sasuke arched an eyebrow at her wording, faint amusement showing in his dark onyx eyes. "No, you can't ask."

"O-oh…" Hinata stared at her half-eaten fish.

She heard him sigh and got the distinct impression that he had made an attempt at humor, however dry it was. "Hyuuga, you are seriously too polite for your own good." He stood up. "Next time, don't ask if you _can_, just _ask_ and maybe I'll even tell you."

Hinata watched him as he settled himself on top of a tree branch(3).

_Will you really tell me if I'm not too polite about it?_ Hinata desired to ask him but figured that he probably would strangle her first for her rudeness before he answered any of her questions, so she stayed silent.

After a while, Hinata began to suspect that he had dozed off. Silently, she extinguished the fire and prepared to leave, intent on finding the stream where Sasuke caught the fish. She wanted to be able to at least wash her face before they set out again.

"I hope you're not planning on running away." Sasuke spoke up from his perch on the tree branch.

Hinata jumped in surprise. She turned around to face him, her hand fisted at her chest. "N-no, I w-was j-just planning t-to c-clean up a l-little…"

"I see…" he paused and pointed at his left side "the stream's that way. You're going the wrong direction."

Hinata flushed. "O-oh...Thank you." She bowed at him although he probably couldn't see it.

Almost as an afterthought, just as she was nearly out of earshot, Sasuke flatly said, "You don't want Orochimaru finding you by yourself so be quick about it."

Hinata told herself that she was not affected by Sasuke's attempt at scaring her. Even so, she washed her face as fast as she could, nearly scrubbing her skin raw in her haste.

Rain clouds were starting to darken the sky as she returned back to their makeshift camp. Sasuke was still where she left him earlier. He didn't give any indication that he noticed her arrival. Vaguely, she wondered if he was finally sleeping. She had wanted to ask him if they would stay there and let the rain pass or if they would continue their journey.

She didn't want to catch a cold again so she hoped he would say the former.

Walking closer, she noticed that his eyes were open. She debated for a moment if she should ask him now. Hinata walked closer and then stopped short.

Overhead, the gray wisps of clouds became thicker and thicker. Distant rumbling of thunder could be heard. But…

Hinata didn't notice any of these. Her attention was solely fixed at the stranger perched on top of a tree branch in front of her. He looked like the Uchiha she had been traveling with for over a week and yet…

He wasn't. He seemed different somehow.

This Sasuke looked young and afraid…he looked…_gentle_. His eyes were troubled…the way they never appeared to be before…

Just a little while ago, he seemed untouchable to Hinata…emotionless and dull. Now however… Emotions she couldn't name were swimming behind his dark eyes.

Hinata blinked. Her heart gave a loud thud.

This Sasuke looked so isolated and lonely…it's as if he was lost and can never find his way back.

Her heart gave another loud thud.

This Sasuke looked vulnerable…and kind. This Sasuke…

Hinata brought her hands up over where her heart was beating loudly.

This Sasuke looked very sad.

Overhead, rain clouds let loose fat raindrops on the ground, soaking everything they touch…

Washing away the dirt of times gone past.

And even though Hinata never liked the rain, she wished right then that she could be like a raindrop that could touch everything…

Then and there Hinata wished to wash away Sasuke's sadness. And perhaps…

Just perhaps…

She could be the one to replace it with happiness.

.

.

.

.

**To be Continued…

* * *

**

**Author's Notes:**

(1) _her team was rarely assigned missions that allowed them more than a week outside of Konoha_ – This is in reference to the filler episodes in the anime and not the manga.

(2) _at her side stood Sasuke's figure, looking down at the woman, completely unmoved_ – I have written other versions of this scene, most of it with the woman oozing blood everywhere and generally looking thoroughly beaten up. I was disturbed by the whole thing and was quite unsure if the current T rating could cover it up so I decided to mellow it down a notch.

(3) _settled himself on top of a tree branch_ – Tribute to Rumiko Takahashi's Inuyasha. Gotta love it even though the ending was hanging.

This chapter was inspired from the song "Cry" by Mandy Moore.

At last! 4,525 words later, this chapter is finished! Sorry for the VERY long delay. To tell you the truth, this chapter was already finished three months ago but every time I read it (I must have re-read it for over thirty times already), the last part always seemed to be hanging, as if there's something I need to add but can't figure out what. And then I recalled the song "Cry" and it's pretty much smooth sailing from there.

Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter!

**Sausa** – Thanks!

**Let's Disappear in a Dream** – Thank you very much!

**Didi74** – Oh ho ho ho! So you caught on! They won't _exactly_ hear each other's thoughts but that's a really close guess. And I'm very sorry if I put you in a six month wait. But now it's an update! Thanks for the review!

**NanamiYatsumaki** – Yeah, he is…but I think that adds to his charm. Anyway, there's nothing that can get couples closer than a fever and cold! LOL. Thanks for reviewing!

**MissMinnie08** – I hope you haven't forgotten me. Hehe. It's almost four months since I last updated and I'm sorry… Thank you for the encouragement! Don't worry, I kind of know where this story is going, I have it all planned out. I really appreciate your concern…Thank you very much!

**TONI** -- Thanks!

**Puffgirl Vivi** – I feel so happy that you find my explanations of Sasuke's attitude helpful in giving more insight to his character. I usually find that writing a chapter using Sasuke's point of view is very hard since I somehow have to think like him…sort of. Anyway, thank you for the wonderful review!

**Encuentrame** – , I liked it too! I guess it's just as well they didn't since they just kissed in the last chapter. Thanks for the review!

**Kawaii Kabu** – Yeah, it definitely will! I hope this chapter and Sasuke's promise eased your worries! Thank you for reviewing!

**Hinata6** – Thank you!

**M-dono**– Hmm…you're right, it sounded like a ghost at first, my bad. On a different note, I'm happy I made you happy! I hope you like this chapter too!

**kenshinlover2002** – Thank you.

**Klutzilla01** – Thank you for reviewing!

**neon flux** – Uhh…yeah. I can't hope to match that looong review…but thanks for the 'encouragement'. You really made me smile there. !

**neophyte serendipity** – Sino ka ba talaga? Si Sensei o si Deqi?

**gina clary** – Oh…you reviewed the very first prologue…Thanks! To answer your question, I'm not planning on making this story into an epic…hmm…maybe it'll be thirty-some chapters or shorter…hopefully.

**peppy526** – Thanks! Probably about thirty plus chapters or shorter.

**Slim Shady** – Thanks so much for the review and the compliment!

**Anonym** – Thank you! I hope this chapter meets your expectations!

**Hyuga Hinani** – Hope you like this chapter!

**Nimiko** – I'm so happy you put the effort into reviewing almost every single chapter. I really appreciate it. I hope this chapter made you happy!

**Melinda** – (Blushes) Thank you!

**winterkaguya** – Thanks for the review!

**hyuga-suporter** – Thanks! And don't worry, it's okay if you don't review every chapter, I won't hold it against you. ;

**IHateTheLog** – Thank you for reviewing!


	10. Chapter 9 : Raison d'etre :

**Disclaimer:** Naruto is not mine.

**Last Time  
**"_I…I'm afraid…" Hinata whispered against his neck.  
_"_Don't be." Sasuke's hands tightened minutely on her legs. "I'll protect your eyes. Don't dwell more on it." He didn't speak again after that.  
_…  
_Neji glanced down at the thing clutched on his left hand and then back again at the tree. "Could this belong to you too?" he asked no one in particular.  
_…  
_Then and there Hinata wished to wash away Sasuke's sadness. And perhaps…Just perhaps…She could be the one to replace it with happiness._

* * *

**Pathways**  
Chapter 9  
_Raison d'etre _

* * *

Sasuke allowed himself a small grin as he heard Hinata stumble out of their makeshift camp. He knew she was trying not to look affected when he said that Orochimaru might catch up to them while she was alone by the stream. She wasn't a bad actress at all.

He smirked and closed his eyes.

She was a horrible one. _Utterly and completely without acting skills._

A gust of wind blew in the little clearing, disturbing the leaves of the tree Sasuke was perched on. He felt its cool fingers brush against his skin, caressing his forehead and lifting his bangs. Sasuke opened his eyes and looked up.

Ominous gray clouds were starting to gather in a mass. The sky that was clear and blue a while ago was now overcast with rain clouds. There was also the distant rumbling of thunder. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. It would not do at all if they got caught in another rain shower. His traveling companion would most likely get sick again if they continued their journey during this bad weather.

Sasuke frowned.

But it wasn't like he was _concerned _for her or anything. He just didn't want to get delayed any longer. They already had wasted enough time by that inn with the crazy woman as innkeeper. And besides…

Walking under the rain didn't suit well with him. He hated the rain.

He hated how it felt on his skin, like tiny pinpricks, unrelenting and harsh. He hated how it stuck to his body, leaving him cold and wet. Most of all…

Sasuke hated the memories it brought. Memories that he had buried deep within his soul...Memories that resurfaced every time the rain fell.

Fresh and vivid memories.

They would come and torment him again and again, like an old battered movie, with the images of that cursed night. All over again, he would be reminded painfully why he had chosen this path. Why he had forsaken his friends to follow a lunatic and a murderer…

Why he was living at all.

And then he would remember how he had tried to end his own life… How the memory of his mother had saved him.

His promise to himself…His vow on that stormy night, in front of the lake.

Why he was living at all.

Sasuke would then remember how he used to like the rain very much just because his mother liked it too. He would remember how the two of them used to sit at the front porch of their house and watch quietly as the rain fell. He would remember the past when his mother and father were still alive…When he still had a family.

And he would again feel the loneliness and sadness…the pain. Then, as if in a dream, he would wake up again and remember.

Why he was living at all.

The rain reminds him of his hatred…of all the things he missed and still needed to do.

Why he absolutely must kill Itachi.

Why he was risking Hinata's life in going to Lightning Country.

"U-uchiha-san?" a soft voice came from below him. Sasuke suppressed a startled sound from escaping him. He had not noticed her return. Sasuke scowled darkly. _Yet another reason why I hate the rain._

Shifting, he gracefully landed on the ground in front of Hinata.

"U-um…" She was clearly intimidated by him. "I-I was w-wondering i-if we're g-going to continue t-traveling?" Her sentence ended in a shrill note. Sasuke raised his eyebrow at this. Hinata blushed. "Um…"

Sasuke mentally sighed. It was obvious she wanted to stay, why didn't she just say it out right instead of being so damn polite? He glared at her and stepped closer, invading her personal space.

Hinata "eeped" and moved backwards. Sasuke followed her. "How long have you been standing here and spying on me?" he demanded.

He saw as her eyes widened and she averted her eyes to the side. "N-not long…I-I just came a-and…"

"So you're not going to deny that you have been spying on me?"

"N-no…! I-I mean, y-yes! I-I'm going t-to d-deny –"

"You're not a very good liar are you?" He interrupted, narrowing his eyes.

"I-I'm sorry…I d-didn't mean t-to –"

"Just forget it." He sighed resignedly, his breath blowing on Hinata's bangs. Sasuke turned around and looked up at the tree he was previously resting on. "Anyway, we're going to stay here for a while and let the rain pass. There's not much point in continuing further if you'll get sick again."

"T-thank you." Sasuke heard her say. He felt something in him flutter at her grateful words but he ignored it.

"Whatever." He muttered, surreptitiously glancing at her.

Hinata had settled down at the base of the tree, hugging her knees and shivering slightly. The wind had picked up and the temperature was becoming colder. Sasuke felt a twinge of guilt that he was the reason she was cold. He quashed it away however, telling himself that it was not his fault that her jacket was left behind. She was just too slow in retrieving it, that's all.

He saw her shiver again.

Okay, fine. He relented guiltily. It was his fault, so what?

Sasuke crossed his arms. So what?

It was a while before the rain stopped. Afterwards, travelers in that particular area would wonder why in the middle of a particular meadow, where there once stood an ordinary looking and sparsely leaved tree, stood a majestic tree full of leaves(1).

* * *

Sasuke had been to Lightning Country before during his training under Orochimaru. It was not so different from the village he came from, only a whole lot gloomy and rainy.

If he was honest to himself, he couldn't really blame them for wanting to get the Byakugan. Anyone under this constant rain would get crazy too. Ambitious and crazy.

The reason for this ambitiousness escaped him. And he could care less if not for the fact that their ambitions included harming a certain Hyuuga, which he definitely cannot allow to happen.

That's why, before they completely arrived at Cloud territory, he had gone out of his way to purchase black contacts for the Hyuuga to put on. Casting a genjutsu around her eyes would have also done the trick of hiding her pearl white eyes but it would have also aroused suspicion if ever some high level cloud ninja saw through the illusion. He would not have been this cautious if that innkeeper woman had not tried to kill Hinata. Her sudden appearance only meant that Cloud shinobi knew what to look for to recognize a holder of the Byakugan.

Also…

Sasuke glanced at the parcel he held in his hand. Because of the constant rain, the temperature was always cold and someone had been shivering nonstop because of it. He had been feeling unpleasantly guilty for some reason and his mood had taken a turn for the worse because of this.

During the first two days of their stay in the Hidden Village of Cloud, Sasuke had immediately started gathering information on the whereabouts of the Akatsuki. Orochimaru, at one time, had off-handedly mentioned that this village had something very important that the organization wanted. Sasuke figured that if he should start looking for Itachi, he might as well start here in Lightning Country, were he was sure to find members of the Akatsuki.

But his search turned up nothing so far and it was beginning to wear on his nerves. It was already the end of the third day and he was still nowhere near to knowing anything about the location of the elusive organization.

He shifted the package he held in his arms and stared at the narrow door in front of him. The keyhole was rusty and the wooden edges were chipping off, he remembered it even creaked ominously on its hinges. If this was a vacation, he would have chosen a completely different place to stay, preferably one with hot water and a door with nicely oiled hinges.

But this brief (he hoped it would be) stay was not for sightseeing.

Sasuke fished around in his pocket and pulled out a key. Of course, he could just knock and let the Hyuuga open the door for him but they had agreed (more like he commanded) that both of them would enter the rented apartment using a key. Any person doing otherwise would automatically be considered a potential enemy and would be dealt with accordingly.

An eerie creak resounded throughout the small room as Sasuke entered and closed the door behind him. He paused to shrug of his sandals then padded towards the far left corner of the room where Hinata sat, staring listlessly outside the window and seemingly unaware of his arrival.

"Hey." Sasuke prompted. Hinata blinked and sat straighter. Turning away from the window, she looked up at him then shifted her gaze at the bundle resting beside her and moved to offer it to him. "I t-thought you might need t-this."

He reached out and took the proffered towel. Sasuke considered for a moment and then said, "It never stops raining in this place." She nodded and once again gazed out at the window, a shiver running through her small frame.

Sasuke looked at the package he held in his other hand. "Here," he dropped it on her lap, "use it."

He watched for a moment as she hesitated and then finally opened the parcel. Drying his hair, he walked towards the bathroom. "W-wait!" Hinata called after him. Sasuke paused and looked back at her.

She was clutching the jacket he had given her tightly. "Y-you shouldn't h-have troubled t-to buy it." Her blush was unmistakable. True, he shouldn't have bought her a jacket. But it was his prerogative to do away with his money whichever way he liked. Quite honestly, he had been uneasy whenever she showed signs of being cold just because she lost her previous ugly one (which, he kept convincing himself wasn't his fault). Sasuke buying her a new one wasn't really for her own benefit but for himself. But she didn't have to know that.

Sasuke quirked an eyebrow, "Who said I bought it?"

Her eyes widened for a fraction and then bowed down, clutching the jacket tighter. "S-still…thank you." She looked up and smiled at him.

Strangely, Sasuke felt his face heating up. He scoffed and turned away to hide the pink now tingeing his cheeks.

"Okaeri." She murmured. The door to the bathroom was already half-way closed when he heard it, yet there it was. A whisper, too soft for it to have been meant for him and yet something his heart so deeply longed for.

_Welcome home, huh?_

A smile, too tiny to really have been there at all, formed on his lips. He chanced one last glance at the heiress and just as the door closed fully, Sasuke saw her. The image of Hinata sitting there, hugging the jacket he gave to her chest and smiling peacefully would forever be engraved on his mind.

* * *

"You do resemble that young lady we met a few days ago," the gap-toothed old man rubbed his chin, "and what a pretty little thing she is too – ow…!" He yelped when his equally gap-toothed wife smacked him on the arms.

"I'm right here so mind your manners!" She reprimanded and turned to the stranger. "Hmm, yes, you have the same eyes as her."

Said eyes widened. He was now sure that this couple indeed met Hinata. "Where did you see her? When?" he asked, barely containing the excitement he felt at the news.

It was a few days ago that he had completely lost the trail of the Hyuuga heiress since following a false lead well into another town. After that disappointment, he had been trying his best to sniff out a new trail and had taken to the main roads in hope that he may come across travelers having encountered said missing heiress. It seemed that the gods were smiling on him once again.

"Well, let me think on it." The old man scratched his chin again.

His wife shot Neji with an apologetic smile, "Please forgive him, he can be very forgetful at times." She smacked her husband again, "How can you forget something so easily! We even gave her and her companion a ride!"

Neji blinked, "Her companion?" he repeated blankly.

"Yes, she had someone with her. A handsome bloke, that one." The old lady nodded her head, "Though a bit irritable and gloomy if you ask me."

Handsome? Irritable? _Gloomy?_ "What did this fellow look exactly?" Neji was feeling the beginnings of dread. He had a feeling he wouldn't like to know who this supposed _companion _was.

"Oho! Now I remember!" The old husband, who had been silent up till now, snapped his fingers. "We gave them a ride right up to the village nearest the borders of Lightning Country." He smiled sheepishly, "We even mistook them for a married couple."

Neji tensed in alarm. Lightning Country? The Hidden Village of Cloud was in Lightning Country. It can't be… "How long ago was this?" The panic in his voice made the old couple rear back in surprise.

"W-well… If I remember correctly, it was about a week ago from now." The old woman was the one who answered.

A week ago. That was too long a time for comfort. Neji could feel the beginnings of stress pound on his temples. "Thank you very much for your help." He bowed and hurriedly left.

The old man and woman watched as he disappeared through the trees bemusedly. "So...you think those two eloped?"

* * *

_  
I like the rain Okaa-sama._

A silhouette of a person waved at him, long hair flying with the breeze. Sasuke could feel his legs running towards her. She was by a large cherry blossom tree; her arms were outstretched, waiting. Beckoning. Laughter, the sound of chiming bells, fell from her lips. It was answered by another sound of laughter and Sasuke was surprised to hear that it was coming from him. Since when did he start to laugh again?

The sun glinted behind her, making it hard for him to see her face. He knew that it would be smiling. The sound of her laugh was ringing still. Sasuke continued to run. He squinted against the glare of the sun. When the burning rays finally gave out, he opened his eyes to a row of fluorescent lights over a whitewashed ceiling.

Sasuke blinked a couple times in confusion. The cherry blossom tree and the woman with the bell chime laugh were gone. Rushing footsteps echoed behind him. People wearing white hurried past him, entering a door at the end of the long hallway.

He heard the tinkling of bell chimes coming from that door. Sasuke ran again, following the sound. At the threshold, the tinkling suddenly stopped. Slowly, feeling dread creep up his spine, he peered inside. There, like a dream, was a white sheet gradually falling on top of a sleeping woman.

A sleeping woman…

Sasuke heard someone gasp and then he was running again; through the hallway with the whitewashed ceiling and fluorescent lamps, through a flight of stairs, through people who looked on with pity and then finally through the glass doors.

And then he was outside. Dimly, he felt water droplets falling on his face. He opened his eyes but couldn't see through the water blurring his vision. The rain was cool on the flushed skin of his face. He heard someone gasp again followed by a sob. Who was crying? He wondered. Sasuke tried to look around but his vision was still blurry. With shaking hands, he tried to wipe his eyes but stopped cold when he felt the hot substance of the water.

It wasn't rain water after all. These were tears.

His tears.

A sob escaped his lips and he realized no one was crying except for him. Why was he crying?

…_I'm sorry Okaa-sama but I don't think I like the rain anymore._

* * *

Sasuke sat up from his futon like he had been shocked. It took him several seconds to get his bearing and remember where he was.

The rain, the sleeping woman…it was a dream. A dream that felt so real. Slowly, he let out a breath, his shoulders sagging in relief. But he had been crying in the dream. Sasuke touched his cheek to find that it was dry.

Who was that woman? He had never seen her in all of his life and yet there was something vaguely familiar about her. But what?

Sighing, Sasuke tried to get back to sleep. He blinked a couple of times at the cracked ceiling. Fluorescent lights lining a whitewashed ceiling flashed in his vision. Sasuke blinked and hissed in aggravation. There goes his sleep.

He glanced outside. In a normal situation, he would have gotten up and trained until the sun came up but he could hardly do that here in Cloud territory. He deliberated a moment. There were those scrolls he had never gotten around to reading. Perhaps he could do that now.

Pursing his lips, Sasuke got up and decided to do just that.

Opening his door, bright light assaulted his vision. He blinked a few times, letting his sight adjust to the light. It came as a slight surprise when he saw Hinata sitting by the dining table. She was nursing a cup of something (probably tea, he thought) in her hands. Her white eyes were focused on the window outside. She was staring at the window with a strange kind of focus that Sasuke felt compelled to look at the window too.

It was just the rain. He looked at her again. "You're awake." He stated.

Sasuke watched as she jumped a little in surprise and fixed her gaze at him. "S-sasuke-san…" she breathed, as if the word was hard to say. Before they entered this village, he had asked her to call him by his given name as calling him 'Uchiha' would have attracted unwanted attention. It was not hard to see that she was still uncomfortable in using it.

Sasuke looked at her for a few seconds and went to retrieve his scrolls. When he got back and sat opposite of her by the table, he found a cup with freshly poured tea in front of him. He spared her a look but found that she was again staring outside. She must have gotten him a cup when he went to get his scrolls. He brought the cup to his lips and welcomed the warmth of the tea sliding down his throat.

They sat there in comfortable silence for a while, Sasuke perusing his long neglected scrolls and she gazing out the window. Occasionally, he would peer at her through his eyelashes and every single time, he would find her position and eyes unchanging. He was used to this kind of behavior from her. And perhaps, he found her company tolerable because she left him in peace.

So when she suddenly spoke, it was with no small amount of surprise that Sasuke listened. "Do you like the rain, Sasuke-san?" she turned her disconcerting white eyes to look at him.

He blinked at her, surprised that she spoke without her usual stutter and finding that he liked the sound of it. His silence must have unnerved her for a blush crept up her cheeks and she quickly averted her eyes. "I-I m-mean…"

The sound of her stutter woke him up from his momentary daze. He blinked again and directed his gaze outside. "No, I don't like it." Sasuke answered.

She was looking at him again, as if she couldn't believe that he would deign to answer her offhand question. The blush still staining her face, she asked, "W-why…?"

He scoffed and continued to read his scroll. "I don't see why it should matter." Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her. "I don't ask you why you like the rain, do I?"

She bit her lip and turned once again at the window. "But I don't like it."

Sasuke almost asked 'why?' but felt that it would be hypocritical of him. So she didn't like the rain, but why does she keep on staring at it? Strange girl.

An uncomfortable silence washed over them. "My mother loved when it rained," she said softly, suddenly. Her gaze was transfixed outside the window, seeing something only she could, "And she died when it rained…" she finished, sounding as if she wanted to say more. Sasuke waited but there was no follow-up. He frowned.

She was like him, in a way. The rain reminded them both of what they had lost. For him, it was much more, however. The rain wasn't simply a reminder but a promise, a promise for justice. "Itachi killed them on a day like this." Sasuke answered her earlier question. He didn't need to say who he meant by 'them' for her face showed that she knew who he was referring to.

It was a while after the exchange happened that Sasuke stewed on his reason for opening up to her. What he didn't like was that she hadn't really pressed him for answers, and he still gave it to her regardless. He sighed and continued to read. It was probably because she told him why she didn't like the rain so he also felt compelled to tell her his reason. That's most likely why. He didn't want to feel as if he owed her…yeah.

"Sasuke-san, h-how long are we going to s-stay here?" She asked him in the soft way she spoke.

Sasuke looked at her. "Indefinitely," he replied "there's still something I have to do."

"I-if so…then c-can I help i-in any w-way?" she fidgeted in her seat.

_Help? From her? Pfft._ More importantly… He propped his chin on his hand and smirked at her. "You're fraternizing with the enemy."

"N-no I'm not!" Her face burned bright as a tomato.

"So I heard wrong when you just asked if you can 'help in any way'," Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

She shook her head vigorously and blushed harder. "N-no, I mean…I-I don't s-see you as an e-enemy…I'm not f-fraternizing."

_Huh. _Sasuke didn't know why but what she said rubbed him the wrong way. His temper flared. _What is going on with this girl?_ The two of them met _because_ they were enemies; was kidnapping her and delivering her to Orochimaru not enough a reason?

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and glared at her. "But I _am_ your enemy." His eyes went down to her bare neck, where her hitai-ate used to be, before he took it off. "You're still a Konoha ninja, even without your protector. And I –" he stopped.

What? What _is_ he?

A traitor. A missing-nin. A reprobate. An enemy. He was many things, all disgusting and vile, except for one. He was an avenger.

Sasuke clenched his fist. It doesn't matter what he was_._ As long as he had a purpose, everything else takes second seat.

Having her talk nonsense about not being enemies doesn't change anything. He had a purpose and one purpose only. She was only a means. If they were not enemies, would they even be having this discussion? Certainly, she wouldn't be here right now.

The rain pattered mercilessly outside. It was still dark but it must be about mid-morning already. The villagers would already be about and Sasuke was sure that he could continue with his mission.

He stood up and went to retrieve his gear. "S-Sasuke-san?" he heard her uncertain voice behind him.

"Do whatever you want, _Hinata_." He said her name as if it was an insult. "But know this," he shifted and watched her at the corner of his eyes, "you're here because I have need of you, otherwise you would already be dead."

Yes, she's a kunoichi of Konoha. And he…

_He certainly wasn't her friend. _

But he couldn't help thinking that if things were different…If he hadn't needed Orochimaru or even…If Itachi had not killed his family…

Sasuke entered his dark room, closing the door behind him firmly.

_Could he have been?_

.

.

.

.

…**to be continued **

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Uhmm…so that's that. I know it's been so looong since I last updated. Er… almost a year to be exact, but I'm updating now and I finally know where I'm heading with this fic. I even got the chapters outlined. So, please bear with me. The next updates wouldn't take as long, promise!

Also, much thanks to those who reviewed! You guys got me going!

(1) _stood a majestic tree full of leaves _– Sasuke used a Doton technique to make the tree leafy and stuff. Why would he do this? There could be a number of reasons, go figure.


	11. Chapter 10 : A New Friend :

**Disclaimer:** Naruto is not mine.

**Last Time**

_Neji tensed in alarm. Lightning Country? The Hidden Village of Cloud was in Lightning Country. It can't be… "How long ago was this?" The panic in his voice made the old couple rear back in surprise.  
_…  
_An uncomfortable silence washed over them. "My mother loved when it rained," she said softly, suddenly. Her gaze was transfixed outside the window, seeing something only she could, "And she died when it rained…"  
_…  
"_I-if so…then c-can I help i-in any w-way?"  
_"_Do whatever you want, Hinata." He said her name as if it was an insult. "But know this," he shifted and watched her at the corner of his eyes, "you're here because I have need of you, otherwise you would already be dead."_

* * *

**Pathways  
**Chapter 10  
_A New Friend_

* * *

He wasn't happy, she could tell from the way he was looking at her

The reason for this escaped Hinata, although she had a feeling it had something to do with the conversation they had two days ago. Even then, she didn't see anything wrong with it. He _had_ told her she could do whatever she wanted. Besides, what she was doing was for him as well.

When he had said that they would be staying in this village, she had thought that he meant they would stay for a short time only. Now, it was nearly a weak and Sasuke still didn't seem to be making much headway into whatever it is he was looking for.

Hinata had been raised in a well to-do family and had never experienced being without, this does not mean however that she was unfamiliar with the way things were usually run. She knew that in order to avail of the basic necessities like food and shelter, one must have money.

And to have money, one must work to earn it. Hinata was aware that Sasuke had been stretching his funds thin. The dingy, almost dilapidated apartment they were staying at was testament of that. He had mentioned that he had chosen the place because they were not there for a vacation. That may be true but Hinata also knew that he had rented the place because it was the only place cheap enough to afford.

She also knew for a fact that he hated the sound the rusty hinges of the door made every time he opened it. A tick would start on his left jaw and his lips would purse every time he heard the door creak. If it had been up to him, Hinata was sure he would choose a slightly less dingy apartment, preferably with a creak-free door.

The food they ate every night for the past week must have cost him money too. Hinata wasn't underestimating his capacity to provide for them (Hinata blushed because this sounded as if they were married) but she wanted to earn her keep. She didn't want to be a burden to him. True, she was scared – _terrified_ – to even go outside the four corners of the apartment. It was an unreasonable fear since she could defend herself, she was a ninja after all, but these people were the ones who caused her uncle's death, the same ones who wanted her eyes. It was hard not to be afraid.

Sasuke knew she was scared, she told him so even before they entered this village. Maybe this was the reason he hadn't pressured her into going outside. He even provided her with a set of black contact lenses to hide her pearl white eyes.

And this cost him money too.

Really, the only thing aside from her fishnet shirt and pants that he hadn't bought for her was her jacket. She had her doubts as to how he had procured it but he told her he hadn't bought it so she believed him. Even the fresh set of undergarments she was wearing came from him. Hinata blushed harder.

He came to the apartment one day on an unusual time, briskly handed her a package, and left just as quickly. She had wondered what was going on and it wasn't until she had opened the package he had given her that she understood what his strange behavior was all about. Needless to say, when he got home that night, neither of them could look at each other. Hinata had never felt more embarrassed, her blush only died the next day when he went out again.

And that was another concern. Hinata didn't know what he does or where he goes to the whole day but she was becoming restless. She wanted to have something to do to at least be able to help. He had said that she would be fraternizing with him, the enemy, if she did this. But she wouldn't be fraternizing, not really.

It was correct that he's a traitor to Konoha and a missing-nin which translated as 'enemy' in a Konoha ninja's terms. And while it was also correct that she was still a Konoha kunoichi, her intentions to help him couldn't be called fraternizing because he wasn't an enemy…at least in her own terms.

The time she had spent in his company, no matter how sullen he was most of the time, made Hinata see a whole new side of him. A kind side that he didn't want to acknowledge himself… a side where he also hid his sadness.

And a person who felt sadness couldn't be all that bad. He was like her father, in some ways. The Hyuuga patriarch was always stoic and unfeeling, to the point of ruthlessness but Hinata knew it was a façade to hide his sadness in losing his wife, Hinata's mother.

That's why she knew that Sasuke wasn't as bad as he wanted to appear for he felt sadness. She hoped that she could somehow replace this with happiness, if only for short moments, something she failed to do with her father.

This was the reason why she decided to remain by his side, for as long as he wanted her to stay. Sure, she could escape if she tried but she had not wanted to leave him. So for the past week, she had stayed put, dutifully waiting for him to return home and in her small ways, helping him by preparing him hot tea and food.

But she soon found out that this wasn't enough. She had to work as well.

And so she had asked him if she could help in any way. He had been angry at first but then relented; even going so far as to tell her that she could do whatever she wanted. So thinking, she had set out to find a means to earn money. She was aware that she couldn't work as a ninja, or as an instructor in an academy, as this would completely blow her cover. The point was to remain as inconspicuous as possible.

It was luck that she found a job as a cleaner in the jounin headquarters. She knew this was a risky move but she had no other choice. It was either that or apply as a cloud ninja. Hinata convinced herself that she wouldn't be doing anything more than to sweep floor and dust furniture. It wasn't as if she would be using any ninja skills to do that.

What she hadn't been counting on, however, was Sasuke's presence. He never talked about his activities during the day but really, she shouldn't have been shocked to find out that he had managed to recruit himself as a Cloud ninja. But she was stunned speechless all the same when she looked up from her floor sweeping to find Sasuke, wearing a standard issue Cloud jounin vest and glaring daggers at her.

She should have given him a heads-up on where she would be working but thought it wouldn't matter. Certainly, she hadn't expected him to even be here in Cloud HQ. But she supposed that he being a missing-nin made things easier.

Thinking back, she recalled a meeting Tsunade-sama had had with all of her active ninjas. She had ordered the secrecy of Sasuke's defection as an S-Class mission to be done by all ninjas until he would be retrieved and confined for punishment. It would make sense that Kumogakure was unaware of this and she much doubted that they even knew what Sasuke looked like.

But what if they knew Sasuke was in fact an Uchiha, and a missing-nin at that? Impossible as it may be, what if…

What if it was the whole point? What if they knew it was him and hired him because they knew it was him?

Hinata frowned. This would mean that the Cloud was going behind Konoha's back, which would also explain why they were still after her Byakugan eyes.

Suddenly, Hinata didn't feel as confident with her decision to work here. Maybe she could resign? Hinata mentally shook herself. But she couldn't. She must help Sasuke in any way she could and this was the only thing she could think of. She would just need to be extra careful to not reveal her identity.

"_Hinata_." Sasuke's irritated voice cut through her reverie. "What are you _doing here_?"

This reminded her of her original dilemma. "Sa-sa-sasu…" The intensity of his glare unnerved her greatly. "I-I-I w-was…"

"You know each other?" The person beside Sasuke asked.

Hinata felt relieved when Sasuke's glare left her a moment to stare at his companion. "Yes," he answered tersely, "she's my _sister_." He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Huh, well you don't look much alike. She's prettier than you, I should say, eh Takashi-san?" _Takashi-san?_ Hinata wondered vaguely as she gasped at the person's audacity (and stupidity) to speak with such cheeky familiarity with Sasuke. She looked at said Uchiha and noticed the usual tick on his left jaw that usually meant he was annoyed and wanted to kill something.

It was a miracle nothing was still happening.

"We are… half-siblings." Sasuke clarified stiffly. "She had… a different mother."

Hinata blinked. There was a word to describe his explanation; and it's… _lame._ Although she couldn't say that it was not believable, she could still think of at least ten different explanations that would be better. But his account ruled out any possibility of his identity as an Uchiha being discovered. It also explained the false family name he was using.

So it was really just her eyes Kumogakure were after.

"Hmm, her mother must have had a prettier face then." This person either had a death wish or extremely dumb, Hinata thought.

Now it was clear that Sasuke was getting pissed out of his mind; she could swear she heard him grinding his teeth in aggravation. "And yours didn't have enough." Sasuke retorted.

The person shrugged, easily brushing aside Sasuke's insult. He beamed at her instead. "Hi!" he turned to Sasuke. "So, introduce us!"

Hinata watched in morbid fascination as Sasuke mechanically introduced the stranger. All the while, she saw irritation clearly burning behind his eyes. His words came out between clenched teeth. He must be really surprised to see her here if he was letting this much emotion get past his usual pokerfaced exterior.

When the introductions were finished, Sasuke and his companion, who Hinata learned was called Toshio, abruptly left supposedly for a mission that the two of them were setting out to do before Sasuke saw her along the halls. With an internal sigh of relief, Hinata watched them walk away but before Sasuke disappeared completely, he gave one last look at her that told Hinata she was in real trouble later.

This time, when he was finally gone from her view, Hinata sagged against the wall. Why did these things happen to her? She was only trying to help…

Hinata resumed sweeping and dusting the halls, occasionally sighing in resignation whenever she thought of what's waiting for her at the apartment. Sasuke was really mad…

"Excuse me," a decidedly feminine voice interrupted her dismal musings. Hinata gave a slight start and turned around to find a female jounin looking on at her with concern. "Oh, I'm sorry, did I startle you? I didn't mean to." She smiled apologetically.

Hinata shook her head. "N-no, it's alright. I-I wasn't paying attention…"

The woman grinned. "I'll say, it must be something tough. You probably sighed about twenty times already."

"Oh!" Hinata blushed in embarrassment. "W-was I t-that l-loud?"

A pleasant laugh escaped the woman. "No. I only noticed because I was observing you." Her laughter slowly died and she looked at Hinata in curiosity. "You're new here?"

"Y-yes." Hinata didn't quite know what to feel about being observed by a complete stranger. She tried to smile at the woman nonetheless. "I-I came h-here with my b-brother…" she explained, stringing on to Sasuke's made up story.

"Your brother?" The female repeated.

"W-we are new h-here…"

"Ah, so that newcomer, Sasuke Takashi, is your brother?" At Hinata's nod, the woman gave a thoughtful look at her. "Hmm, you don't look very much alike, except for the same shade of hair and eyes."

"He's my h-half-brother." Hinata continued, feeling uncomfortable at lying.

"That would explain it then." The woman grinned again. "I hope you don't mind my nosiness but it's quite rare to have another female here in HQ. It's refreshing to be able to speak to a fellow girl." She smiled at Hinata. "So, your name?"

Hinata couldn't explain but she was finding that talking to this woman, this stranger, was really easy. Her friendly attitude was so completely different to the other ninjas Hinata had met so far inside the Cloud HQ that she couldn't help but start to like this stranger. "It's Hinata."

The female's smile grew wider. "My name's Nii Yugito." She extended her hand for a shake, something Hinata found to be a rather quirky behavior for a ninja. "But you can call me Yugito. It's a pleasure Hinata-chan."

* * *

"Tsunade-sama, a messenger bird just came from Neji-kun."

Tsunade looked up from the mission reports she had been reading. Her assistant handed her a piece of paper. The message was in cipher.

"This is the decoded message." Shizune handed her another piece of paper. A single sentence was written in Shizune's thin characters.

_I'm in Lightning Country._

Tsunade's eyebrows shot up. "It seems he found Hinata."

"And I'm guessing this isn't good news." Shizune said worriedly.

Tsunade blinked at her, bemused. "Oh that's right; you weren't here yet when all that mess happened."

"Mess?" Shizune asked, blinking back, "What mess?"

"It's a long story," Tsunade sighed. She massaged her temples, feeling a headache coming. "Let's just say that if ever the Hyuuga Clan found out that Hinata is in Lightning Country, _I'll_ be in big trouble."

"It's that bad, huh?" Shizune frowned thoughtfully.

"A good thing though, we managed to make them believe that Hinata's on a mission."

Shizune nodded in agreement. There was a moment of silence as both contemplated the consequences _if_ the clan didn't believe. That would be a disaster, no doubt.

"But Neji-kun following Hinata-chan to Lightning Country just begs the question; why is she there?"

"I'm not quite certain either. It doesn't make sense." Tsunade held up the mission reports she was reading earlier. "Orochimaru isn't in Lightning Country, that's for sure."

"Then… Maybe Hinata-chan escaped!" Shizune said hopefully.

"So why would she go there of all places?" Tsunade shook her head, "No, I don't think that's the case here." She stared at the mission scrolls, lost in thought for a while. There was someone the reports failed to mention. "It's that Uchiha…"

"Sasuke-kun? Isn't he supposed to be with Orochimaru?" Shizune asked. "More importantly, why would he drag Hinata-chan all the way to Lightning Country?"

The Godaime Hokage didn't know why he wasn't with Orochimaru but… "It's got something to do with Itachi. I'm sure of it."

"Why do you think Itachi would be in a place like that?"

"Hmm, I don't know Itachi's reasons but I'm willing to bet my bottles of sake that the Akatsuki's there."

"The Akatsuki… what business could they have in Lightning Country, I wonder?" Shizune said.

Tsunade could only think of one reason. The Akatsuki was a very reclusive organization. They can't be seen if they didn't want to be seen. In the past, the only reason they even let themselves be seen by Konoha ninja was because they were after Naruto. And in this case, that would mean… "The only thing I could link with this is that they found another jinchuuriki in that area."

Shizune snapped her fingers. "If I'm not mistaken, there is one in…"

"Kumogakure." Tsunade muttered darkly. Hinata in Kumogakure…

She frowned in worry.

_This is not good. Not good at all.  
_

_

* * *

_

"So how do you find Kumogakure?" Yugito asked, munching on a piece of tempura. "It's cool, isn't it? I mean, literally of course." She said, eyeing Hinata's jacket.

"Yes, it r-rains a lot. I-it's also quite c-cold." Hinata agreed.

"Hmm, I guess it takes a bit of getting used to." Yugito amended. "But I like the cold weather so I'm a little biased." She grinned and heaped takoyaki on Hinata's plate. "Well, eat up! It's my treat."

Hinata smiled in return. For some reason, she found that she could talk freely with Yugito. That's why when the Cloud kunoichi invited her to the cafeteria, Hinata didn't hesitate to come. It's as if the two of them had been friends for a long time even if Yugito was slightly older than her. But Hinata had to wonder at Yugito's kindness to her. Did Yugito feel at ease around her too?

"Umm…Y-yugito-san?"

Yugito paused, chopsticks in mid-air. "Hmm?"

"W-why are you so nice to m-me?" Hinata asked shyly. At Yugito's silence, Hinata hurried to add, "I-if you do n-not mind my a-asking –"

"It's because you're cute and I love cute girls," came the serious reply.

Hinata stared at her. That was unexpected. "Oh…! I-I-I…" she stammered.

Yugito slapped her hands on the table and laughed. "Just joking! Hinata-chan, you should have seen your face!" Yugito managed to stop laughing for a moment to imitate Hinata's expression and started cackling again.

_Did I look that funny just now?_ Hinata couldn't help it, she started giggling too.

They kept at it for a while. Hinata couldn't remember when she had last felt this free. She knew she should be wary of Cloud ninjas but she really couldn't bring herself to distrust Yugito.

All their laughing (especially Yugito's loud guffaws) made the heads of other ninjas turn to them in bemusement. When Hinata noticed this, she flushed in embarrassment. Her abrupt silence made Yugito stop laughing too.

"You looked like you needed a friend, that's why."

At this, Hinata glanced up. Yugito had a thoughtful expression on her face. "You know? You remind me of myself…once upon a time." She gave a wistful smile. "When I saw how depressed you were back there, I just had this impulsive urge to be your friend."

It was a simple explanation, so simple in fact that Hinata found that she believed it absolutely. Her heart warmed. Indeed, back there, she had felt really down, dreading her upcoming confrontation with Sasuke. Now, however, she felt reenergized as if she could take on anything.

The older woman beamed, "So, can I?"

Hinata stared stupidly. What had she missed?

"Can I be your friend?" Yugito clarified for her.

Hinata blinked and then she smiled. "We _are_ friends."

Yugito smiled back. And just like that, Hinata gained an ally in this strange and cold place.

* * *

Later that day, Hinata returned to a cold and empty apartment. Sasuke still haven't returned from the mission he and Toshio had left for earlier. She sighed in relief. While she was still with Yugito, Hinata hadn't worried much about what Sasuke's reaction would be. But on her way back from work, doubts started to swim around her head and it wasn't long before she got herself into a tizzy of worry.

So now she was thankful that Sasuke wasn't here. Hurriedly, Hinata prepared Sasuke's food, placing it on the only table they had when it was done. Just as quickly, she prepared herself for bed and in ten minutes flat, she was already dozing on her futon.

She didn't want to be awake when he came back. Maybe tomorrow, he would have had already forgotten his earlier anger. Even then, he was usually gone when she woke up in the mornings (that's why she prepared his breakfast at night before she went to sleep) so perhaps the confrontation she very much dreaded wouldn't take place in another 24 hours.

Hinata hoped so. She counted on this as she drifted off to sleep.

What she didn't count on however, was Sasuke staying and waiting up for her the next morning.

Naturally, Hinata very nearly had a heart attack when she woke up and found Sasuke sitting rigidly in front of the table, his food from the night before untouched, and a stormy expression on his face.

His eyebrows met in a severe frown. "We need to talk." He gritted out through clenched teeth.

It was obvious he had been brewing and stewing over this the whole night, judging from the faint bluish circles under each of his eyes. Hinata gulped nervously and slowly seated herself in front of him. "S-s-sasuke… I –" she began.

"How could you be so _stupid_?" Sasuke cut her off. "You said they were after your eyes."

"T-they a-are –"

"Then _why_?" he growled sharply, Hinata flinched. "Why did you go there? How could you be anymore foolish? That place is _filled_ with Cloud ninjas Hinata!" Sasuke's voice didn't rise in volume but for all the intensity it held, it might as well have.

Hinata flinched again for the sharp rebuke. She felt ashamed and guilty for making him worry so much but at the same time, resolved by her decision to work there. It's what she needed to do to be of any help to him. She would have been a burden if she just stayed here in the apartment, doing nothing. And she wouldn't have met a great person like Yugito if she'd done otherwise.

Now, more than ever, she felt like she'd made the right thing. Sasuke just can't see it yet.

"What if they somehow discovered your secret?" He continued in his low but sharp voice. "The ninjas in that HQ could over power you in a flash. Then what, damnit! I can't believe how incredibly stupid you are!"

Still, all this resoluteness didn't take away the sting of Sasuke's words. Hinata felt her eyes begin to burn with the familiar feeling of tears. She bowed her head, her vision blurring as she tried to suppress her tears from flowing. She knew that if a single drop managed to escape, the rest would follow and then she would be hard-pressed to stop from crying.

She didn't want to do that in front of Sasuke. He already believed her to be stupid and weak. Crying would only add to the list of faults he attributed to her. Hinata bit her lip to try to stop it from trembling.

"Wouldn't you even try to explain yourself?" Sasuke asked harshly.

Hinata stifled the sob bubbling from her throat. Gosh, she felt like such a martyr at that moment. No one was asking her and yet, here she was, making herself endure in silence. In truth, she was the one terrorizing herself by not even trying to defend her actions. Wasn't that even more shameful?

Yes. Yes it was.

And perhaps Sasuke saw her as a weakling because she can't stand up for herself. But… if she tried to speak now he'd know she was on the verge of tears…

Although, what's wrong in crying? It's a natural human reaction, there's no shame in it. Even she saw the most amazing person she knew cry once or twice. If he was here right now, he'd probably even encourage her to cry her eyes out in front of Sasuke.

This made Hinata smile weakly. Just as before, the thought of Naruto managed to bring her confidence back. Naruto, who always did what he _felt_ was the right thing, even if others thought otherwise.

And wasn't defending her actions right? Hinata knew it was. Slowly, she lifted her face to look at Sasuke.

Her eyes were shiny and brimming with tears; her chin trembled with the sob she was trying to suppress. And her lips…Her lips held a tremulous smile of confidence.

Hinata was breathtaking to behold in that instant.

She didn't know it, but this sight made Sasuke's heart sputter to a stop for a moment.

But she did saw his eyes widen briefly and he looked taken aback. She sniffled. "I-I'm s-sorry Sasuke-san… I wanted to be h-helpful that is why I t-tried to get a j-job. P-Please don't w-worry for me, I can d-defend myself." She stuttered all the way but that was fine, Hinata felt vindicated.

Sasuke gaped at her like it was the first time he had seen her clearly. He blinked once and seemed to snap out of whatever trance he was in. "Who said I was worried?" he snapped, a faint blush on his cheeks. "I'm mad because you're stupid, not because I'm worried about you."

Hinata smiled at him for perhaps the second time since they traveled together, seeing through his bluster. It was strange that she hadn't seen it earlier through his anger and harsh words. He had tried to deny it but it was clear that he really was just worried about her. She felt foolish now for almost crying over his scolding of her.

Her smile made him stop short again. "Why didn't you tell me you'll be working in that place?" he floundered, trying to take control of the conversation again.

She was relieved that he wasn't angry at her anymore. "I didn't t-think it w-would be i-important."

"You didn't think…" he deadpanned. "And what if something happened to you there? I suppose you _didn't think_ of that too?"

"Umm…" Hinata faltered. "I'm s-sorry Sasuke-san…"

"Just…" He gave a long suffering sigh. "Just remember that if you're discovered, I wouldn't be able to help you." He appeared to think this through for a moment and then, "I'm talking about helping your eyes, of course."

Of course. Her eyes crinkled at the corners as she remembered his promise to protect her eyes. Deep down, she knew he wouldn't let anything happen to her, even if it wasn't only about her eyes. She was certain of it. But she wouldn't abuse this promise of his.

She would treasure it. "Th-thank you, Sasuke-san."

He appeared to be flustered for a moment but quickly hid it that Hinata wasn't sure if it had been there at all. "You have to call me with no honorifics if we're going to pretend to be siblings." Sasuke said in his usual blank manner.

"Y-yes. Sa-Sasuke…" Hinata sniffed. "D-does this mean y-you f-forgive me?"

Sasuke's lips twitched. "You're an idiot." He said. "I'll forget it."

That was as close as he would get to admitting that he accepted her apology, Hinata knew. But that was alright with her, he wouldn't be Sasuke if he did otherwise.

.

.

.

.

…**to be continued**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

To all who reviewed the last chapter, thank you very much! I appreciate it!

Review please!

* * *


	12. Chapter 11 : Over the Edge :

**Disclaimer:** Naruto is not mine.

**A/N:** This chapter contains language that may offend some readers, so be warned.

**Last Time**  
_But she was stunned speechless all the same when she looked up from her floor sweeping to find Sasuke, wearing a standard issue Cloud jounin vest and glaring daggers at her.  
_"_Hinata." Sasuke's irritated voice cut through her reverie. "What are you doing here?"  
_…  
_The female's smile grew wider. "My name's Nii Yugito." She extended her hand for a shake, something Hinata found to be a rather quirky behavior for a ninja. "But you can call me Yugito. It's a pleasure Hinata-san."  
_…  
"_Kumogakure." Tsunade muttered darkly. Hinata in Kumogakure…  
__She frowned in worry.  
__This is not good. Not good at all.  
_…  
"_Y-yes. Sa-Sasuke…" Hinata sniffed. "D-does this mean y-you f-forgive me?"  
__Sasuke's lips twitched. "You're an idiot." He said, releasing a resigned sigh. "I'll forget it."  
__That was as close as he would get to admitting that he accepted her apology, Hinata knew. But that was alright with her, he wouldn't be Sasuke if he did otherwise._

* * *

**Pathways**  
Chapter 11  
_Over the Edge_

* * *

Sasuke felt strange lately. He pondered on this as he and Hinata went to work that morning.

His stomach would feel queasy and it would get hard to breathe. He wondered if he was coming down with something. A foreign sickness native only to cold and rainy places perhaps? It was odd since he wasn't prone to catch illnesses. And his body felt fine… well except for the short bouts of fever he would have but it would always pass once his heart rate returned to normal.

His heart was another thing he was worried about. Recently, it was inclined to stop on him. Anatomy wasn't a strong suit of his but he knew for a fact that human hearts wasn't supposed to do that. Sasuke speculated that his cursed seal was starting to take its toll on him. If that was so, then he didn't have much time left to find Itachi.

He had entered the shinobi system of the Cloud to find intel information on recent activities inside the village. If the Akatsuki had been here in the past, Sasuke was positive that it would somehow turn up in all the scrolls he had managed to commandeer as a Cloud jounin. He learned that there were smatterings of a rebellion inside Kumogakure and an uncertainty within the leadership of the Raikage...

But all these were useless information to Sasuke.

The only consolation he had was that at least now, he was certain that the Akatsuki have yet to come inside the village. If he could somehow find out their reason for coming here, then perhaps he could get the advantage he needed over Itachi.

The question now was; where to look? His search in the library exclusive only to Cloud jounin turned up nothing. He doubted there were other places more top secret than that…

Sasuke frowned in thought. There was that place however…The Raikage's personal office. That was the one place he hadn't searched. Maybe something useful could be there somewhere… But how would he get to enter? The place was well guarded; he couldn't get in without being noticed. And being noticed meant that he had to kill someone…

"S-Sasuke, I'm going a-ahead," Hinata's soft voice spoke broke through his dark thoughts. He looked up and her face came into view. "W-Will you be h-home early t-today?"

Sasuke studied her face for a moment. It wasn't only his body's weird malfunctions or how to get the information he wanted, that gave him cause for concerns. Lately, he had noticed that Hinata stuttered less and less. She had been smiling more often too. Sasuke was inclined to attribute this shift in her behavior to that Yugito woman she was so fond of.

But he had to wonder if her friendship with the Cloud kunoichi was the only reason.

In the past, he had observed that she only faltered and stammered when she talked to him. Now however… Oh, she still faltered and stammered around him. Once or twice a day. Perhaps she didn't find him as scary anymore…?

Sasuke wondered at this. _Am I losing my touch?_

"Um… Sasuke?" Hinata timidly prompted. "Are you going on a m-mission today?"

"No," he paused, remembering her question from earlier, "I'll go home early. I have to do something." _I have to think of a way to get inside the Raikage's tower._

"I'll p-prepare something then." Sasuke watched as she flushed faintly for some reason unknown to him. "P-Please take care of y-yourself." She smiled.

His heart skipped a beat. Sasuke felt himself get sick again. There were the usual symptoms; queasiness in the stomach, shortness of breath and the hot sensation of a fever on his cheeks. He nodded distractedly as Hinata bade him goodbye and disappeared as she turned a corner. He stared at that corner, as if in a trance, feeling his bodily functions gradually return to normal.

Other shinobi passed him in the hallway, looking on at him in bemusement as he gazed at nothing. Some thought to greet him but the strangely vacant expression he wore stopped any attempts.

Yes, something strange was definitely up with him, Sasuke decided.

_But what?_

* * *

"Man, did you see the rack on that girl?"

Sasuke ignored the two loud morons supposedly training at the other side of the target hall. He flipped the kunai he held in his hands and with a flick of his wrist launched it into the air. It flew up and just before it hit the ceiling, sailed into an arc and came down. Another kunai hit it on its ring handle.

The two embedded themselves dead center on the target board.

Sasuke went and tugged the two kunai free. He remembered the first person he ever thought on how to properly throw a kunai. _Hn…_

He stared contemplatively on his kunai, flipping it now and again. The two of them had settled into a routine the past few days. Every morning, they would go together to HQ. The people didn't make much of it for it seemed that the news of them being brother and sister traveled fast. If they happened upon each other (usually, Hinata would enter a room he was in) they would acknowledge each other, he with a nod and she with a smile. They wouldn't go home together since their shifts ended at different times but every time he got back, there was always food prepared for him. At first, it surprised Sasuke that she could even cook, considering she was the heiress of a powerful clan. Heirs had no business in the kitchens, as far as he knew… At least, it wasn't his when he still belonged to a large clan. He rarely wandered into the kitchen, if at all.

Upon sampling her cooking however, his curiosity was suddenly satisfied. She could cook alright.

It was just a matter of how edible it was.

Regardless, he ate them anyway. She would regularly ask what he thought of it and usually, when he was feeling gracious, he would say that it hadn't given him food poisoning yet ("It's fine."). No matter how late he was at getting home, she would always be there sitting by the table and waiting for him.

And Sasuke had to wonder again at her change in behavior. Had he not told her that they were enemies? But then all his wondering would scatter whenever she smiled and bid him goodnight. By then, he would be too tired to even bother picking up on the details of his interrupted brooding.

A loud guffaw bounced off the walls of the training area. "I bet they would be as soft as they looked."

Speaking of being interrupted, Sasuke narrowed his eyes. It was amazing how people went to lengths of showcasing their utter disregard for women. Sasuke was a male and he never understood the need of other men to talk publicly about a female's _goods,_ so to speak. Didn't they have a mother?

"I didn't get a chance yet but I intend to find out!"

"Aww! Wouldn't you get slapped for that?" the ninja, wearing a ponytail, joked.

"'Course not! She looked as if she couldn't even run without tripping, what with those big weights on her chest."

Sasuke gritted his teeth. He turned to glare at the two ninja's talking at the far side of the room, next to a target board. Why were they even here if they had no intentions to practice? Irritated, he tried to tune-out their grating voices out of his head. He adjusted his grip and flicked the first kunai on the target, hitting the bulls-eye.

"What was her name again? I can't remember."

Sasuke positioned the second kunai, flexing his grip around it. Eyeing the center of the target, he aimed…

"Ah, I think her name's Hinata."

And then fired.

A shout of alarm echoed through the large area. "Are you okay, man!" A kunai was embedded dead center on the target board, a hairsbreadth away from the other ninja's neck.

"Y-yeah…" the man answered shakily, touching his neck where a thin trail of blood trickled from the cut the kunai made.

His companion shouted angrily at Sasuke. "Hey you! What's your problem, you got a bone to pick with us?!"

Sasuke had his side faced to them. He was staring blankly at his hand, completely ignoring the two. He really had not thought about it, his body just reacted with the sudden spike of his temper. His vision was starting to become sharper, a clear indication that his Sharingan was activating. He tightened his fist. He mustn't lose it or he would completely blow his cover.

But it was getting hard to contain the blinding rage flaring within him. _How dare they?_ Sasuke seethed. They had no right to talk about her in that degrading manner. He wanted to kill them for even thinking of those things.

Sasuke clenched his jaw in an effort to mask the anger he was feeling. And he was succeeding too but the ninja, who nearly got skewered, had to open his rotten mouth. "Explain yourself, you son of a bitch!"

Sasuke's control snapped. Consequences be damned. He wanted to kill something.

"My hand slipped." Sasuke deadpanned. He directed his impassive stare at the Cloud ninjas. "Sorry."

The nonchalant way he had said it made it perfectly clear that he wasn't in the least bit remorseful. He was raring for a fight.

"You fucker! Who do you think you're messing with here, huh?!" The more vulgar of the two wasted no time in charging Sasuke, aiming a punch at him.

Sasuke sidestepped, catching the offending fist in a death grip. "Do I look like I care?" He drew back and punched the nin straight on the face, breaking a nose.

The ninja yowled and cursed in pain, stumbling back. Sasuke delivered another punch right to the gut and then roundhouse kicked the ninja, sending him flying to the opposite wall.

"Is that all?" Sasuke taunted, his expression giving nothing of the excitement and fury he felt coursing within his veins. His lips pulled back in a sneer. "You can try again if you want."

"Damn man! Just what the hell is wrong with you?" The other ninja with the ponytail shouted at him.

Sasuke turned around and faced the person. "Nothing's wrong. Your companion had a dirty mouth, I thought I should help get rid of it for him." He stared, unmoved. "I heard you had somewhat of a dirty mouth as well, shall I get rid of it too?"

The man's eyes widened and he stepped back.

"Shit…" The ninja Sasuke had kicked groaned in pain behind him. "So you want to pick a fight huh? Let's take him, Mori!"

The ponytailed fellow, Mori, nodded and in a flash of chakra aided speed, aimed a kick at Sasuke's ribs. He deflected it with his arms.

The strength behind the blow reminded Sasuke that he was dealing with two jounin here, not the average ninja. He couldn't use his Sharingan to help him read their movements but he had a lot of battle experience to fall back on. But Sasuke didn't need to use his Bloodline Limit to win a fight like this. There were seals placed inside the target practice area they were in to prevent anyone from using jutsus, like ninjutsu and genjutsu, that required a lot of chakra to perform.

This fight was purely taijutsu.

The three fought; Sasuke successfully parrying kicks and punches while occasionally delivering ones of his own. It was quite an acrobatic show, what with the two Cloud shinobi's relentless attacks and Sasuke's graceful display of exceptional taijutsu skills.

And like all shows were wont to do, this particular performance attracted an audience. It wasn't long before the practice area was filled with spectators, the majority of which were jounin ninjas, who were all thrilled to see three of their own displaying such enthusiasm in sparring. Of course, they would misunderstand where this fight was coming from.

Well, except for one. A kunoichi named Yugito.

She was watching the fight escalate into something more than simple sparring. She had a feeling as to what had brought this on. Yugito knew the two ninjas Sasuke was fighting; those morons were popular for their utter disregard for females. In the past, she had even threatened to dismember them limb for limb when they tried to cop a feel of her chest.

Beside her, Hinata bit her lip. "P-Please s-stop them, Y-Yugito-san," she pleaded worriedly.

Yugito frowned thoughtfully. "I don't know Hinata-chan. Are you sure this fight is serious? Maybe they really are just sparring."

Hinata shook her head vehemently. "S-Sasuke looks v-very angry. He couldn't be o-only sparring w-with them."

"Angry?" Yugito repeated doubtfully. Sasuke didn't appear angry at all to her. In fact, he wore his usual poker face. But she guessed he was Hinata's brother after all so the girl would know him better… but still…

How angry could he be when he couldn't even wear it on his face?

A loud gasp erupted from Hinata and Yugito focused her attention to the battle again. Sasuke had fallen on his left knee, clutching at his neck.

The cursed seal at the junction there pulsed, surprising Sasuke with a jolt of pain. He had been so preoccupied with the fight that he failed to notice that he had begun to involuntarily draw chakra from it.

The jeers and catcalls from the crowd grew in volume, urging the combatants to carry on with the fight. On any other day, Sasuke would let himself be goaded, but not now. He wasn't confident that he could continue fighting without again accidentally drawing chakra from the cursed seal on his neck.

Sasuke knew that if he drew anymore, he would begin to activate level one of his cursed seal, which he absolutely cannot allow to happen. Not with so many people to witness and suspect something.

_Damn it all to hell_.

Meanwhile, his two opponents saw their opening. Sasuke felt rather than saw the blow coming. He only had time to angle his head so that the strike missed his skull which would have knocked him unconscious. Instead, the hit landed on his jaw, snapping his head to the side. Strangely, the throbbing from the seal drowned out any sting he might have felt.

"So you aren't invincible after all, asshole." The mocking voice grated, the owner clearly fatigued. "Taste this!" The man delivered a kick.

Sasuke could have easily avoided it but pain exploded from the junction of his neck, lancing throughout his body, distracting him. The kick landed on his face.

There was a third blow but it never came. "Enough." A decidedly feminine voice commanded with authority above him. Sasuke looked up and saw a familiar woman grasping firmly on the ninja's raised foot, effectively stopping it from harming Sasuke.

She released the foot she had been holding. She turned and addressed the crowd. "Go back to your posts, all of you. This sparring's finished."

A few grumbles of protest were heard but they followed her command anyway. Yugito watched as the area emptied out until only a lone figure remained. She crossed her arms and fixed her gaze on the two offending ninjas.

"Nii-taichou…" The shinobi faltered.

"What have you done now, Yoshi?" Nii demanded.

"But Taichou, he was the one who started it!" Yoshi defended himself. "We were minding our own business when he suddenly came at us, right Mori?"

The adrenaline from the fight slowly receded from his system, along with the painful pulsing of his cursed seal. A dull ache was left on its wake, which he was thankful for. However, now, he could feel the pain from his jaw and his split lip. He mentally winced.

"Yeah, Nii-taichou, he was the one who suddenly threw a kunai at us!" Mori agreed. "He meant to kill Yoshi with it."

"Is that so?" the kunoichi raised an elegant eyebrow in speculation. "I wonder why…"

Sasuke spat the blood from his mouth. "They asked for it."

Four pairs of eyes landed on him. "Care to explain, Takashi?" Yugito prompted.

Sasuke stood up unsteadily, taking his sweet time. He fixed the two shinobi with a piercing glare. "They were entertaining thoughts they have no rights in," he shrugged indifferently; "I just wanted to get their minds out of the gutter, that's all."

Yoshi growled and pointed an accusing finger at him. "Don't act all innocent, you bastard! That kunai you let 'slip' could have killed me!"

Sasuke stared impassively. "And you would be, if I hadn't slipped." The cloud jounin snarled and made to charge at him again.

Yugito blocked him with a raised arm. "Boys…" came her warning. She fixed a calculating look at Sasuke. "What thoughts, exactly?"

"Tch. Why don't you ask them?" he shot back, feeling his temper boil again when he recalled what the two morons were talking about earlier. "I'm done with this." He turned and made to exit when he spotted her. He stopped in his tracks.

_Hinata…_

She was standing by the entrance, fidgeting and worrying her lip. Her eyes were wide as she scanned his profile, probably looking for any injuries he had sustained, Sasuke thought. Was she present the entire time? He wasn't sure he wanted to find out but really, the answer was obvious. Yugito's intervention was a dead give-away.

Sasuke didn't know what to feel about her being there to see all that, and quite frankly, he wasn't sure if he wanted to face her yet. Closing his eyes, he expelled a breath.

"S-Sasuke…?" Her anxious voice called out to him.

It was soft but it reverberated throughout the empty area. The other occupants of the room snapped their heads toward her.

There was an audible intake of breath. "Hey, Yoshi, isn't that…?"

Sasuke's eyebrows met in an irritated frown. He didn't need this confrontation right now. He stomped to Hinata's direction. She took a single step back, surprised by his intense stare.

"Umm… Are you h-hurt?" She reached out, intending to touch his face but he caught it with his own hand.

"Not now." Was his succinct reply and so grabbing her arm, he pulled her out of the vicinity.

The three remaining ninjas watched as the two exited out. Yugito looked on in bemusement as brother and sister disappeared from sight. She sighed. "So, you two, care to elaborate more?"

Mori and Yoshi exchanged an awkward look. "Ah… So Taichou," Mori began, "Hinata and that guy… are they by any chance acquainted with each other?"

Yugito scowled. "That's Hinata-san to you, and only because calling her by her last name will be confusing." She crossed her arms. "And to answer your question, yes, Hinata-chan and _that guy_ are acquainted. In fact, they're siblings."

"That would explain it…" Yoshi scratched his neck sheepishly.

"Explain what…?" Yugito asked, and then something clicked in her mind. "You didn't…?" The two ninjas had the grace to look shame-faced. "But you did... You're such morons!"

Yoshi cringed guiltily, "How were we supposed to know they were even related? I mean, they don't look a lot like brother and sister."

"They're half-siblings." Yugito said, as if that explained everything. "Anyway, you two owe Takashi and his sister an apology."

"Aww, Nii-taichou…" came the whined protest.

"Shut it. You two have done enough talking for today. You're lucky Takashi slipped on purpose; else someone would be dead right now." She barked.

Later that day, Yugito would think back to what happened. She understood that Sasuke was well within his rights to come to the defense of his sister's honor. But still, even she had to admit that what he did was a little overboard, even for a big brother.

Something was not quite right with this whole situation. Yugito wondered what it could be.

* * *

Sasuke had dragged Hinata all the way back to their apartment. Once there, he had retreated to his own room. The cursed seal still throbbed dully, sapping his energy. Too tired to even bother cleaning up, he collapsed on his futon.

He glared at the ceiling. Why had he lost his temper so easily? More importantly, why had he willingly instigated a fight? What was wrong with him? He wasn't some juvenile gennin anymore to easily lose his head.

Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose and then touched his cracked lip. He winced. His Sharingan almost activated several times, before and during the fight. It was only through pure stroke of luck that he had managed to contain it every time. If it had, his Uchiha heritage would have been completely exposed. And consequently, Hinata's as well…

And this reminded him of the crux of the matter. That girl…

A memory of the two of them traveling under the rain flashed across his mind. She had attempted to cover her front then but _he had seen_ how her shirt had clung to the curves of her body…

No, definitely not a girl, Sasuke amended. A woman.

She would be the death of him. Was keeping her by his side even worth the trouble he had been getting into for her sake? Granted, she hadn't asked him to start a fight on her behalf. On the other hand, he couldn't just stand by and let those jerks speak that way about her.

It goes against the grain, so to speak.

He had been getting used to defending her that Sasuke guessed it had come as a natural reaction to get angry when he heard Hinata being spoken of in that manner. The question now was, was it reflex too, why he acted that way?

Sasuke was a laid-back person. He was not prone to making brash and impulsive acts. He was a strategist; he always thought things through before he acted on them.

Why then, did he pick a fight in the middle of a training area where others were bound to see? Sasuke was familiar with how his cursed seal worked. He knew that with enough heightened emotions, it could easily act up. It was really stupid of him to even think of fighting, what with him all worked up like that.

Again, it was that woman's fault.

If she wasn't so weak as to constantly need his protection, then he wouldn't be getting used to helping her at all. Maybe he should just let her go and be on her way…

However, there's still the threat of Orochimaru. There was no telling what that snake would do once he found out that she wasn't under Sasuke's care anymore. If something happened to her, he would be in trouble as well.

That damned Blood Synthesis... For the umpteenth time, he cursed himself for even agreeing to go through with it. He should have known better than to trust Orochimaru, the snake.

"Damn it…" He swore silently to the emptiness of the room.

A knock sounded on his door. "May I c-come in, S-Sasuke?" Hinata's soft voice filtered through the wood.

Sasuke pushed himself on his elbows and glared at the door. He was about to tell her to go away when the knob twisted and he saw Hinata letting herself in.

He scowled at her. "I didn't say you can come in."

She blushed, clearly embarrassed. "I-I'm s-so-sorry," she stuttered, "B-but y-your w-wounds n-need to b-be t-tended to." She presented the medical kit she had been clutching in her hands.

He noticed she was stuttering horribly again. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her as she fidgeted where she stood at the threshold of his room. She was chewing on her lip again, looking as if she would rather be anywhere else than here in his room. Her unease rolled off of her in waves, making him feel rotten in the process.

Sasuke sighed in resignation. "Fine. Do whatever." He told her gruffly.

A wobbly smile appeared on her lips. For some reason, Sasuke felt faint all of a sudden. He sat up properly to alleviate the sudden queasiness that permeated his stomach.

She came forward and sat beside his futon. Sasuke looked on in sudden fascination as she proceeded to take out the medical supplies stashed within the first aid kit. She took a swab of cotton and poured disinfectant on it. "I'll have to c-clean the cut f-first," she told him softly as she raised the swab on his split lip. "This would h-hurt a little."

Despite her warning, Sasuke jumped slightly from the sting the disinfectant made. A _little_ huh…right. Hinata bit her lip again, murmuring an apology.

She worked in silence, worrying her bottom lip all the while. Sasuke tried not to stare, he really did, but it was as if his eyes were glued to her face. He began to notice minute details of her; features he had not really bothered to look for in the past.

His unexpected reactions were making him feel quite stupid. He failed to see the logic of taking mind of these little nuances in her appearance. Nevertheless, he still didn't fail to notice.

Like how her eyes weren't all uniform in color. From afar, they appeared to be, but this close he could see the slight difference in color of the sclera and the pupil. Her eyes' pupils held more of a pearl white hue to it while the sclera of each eye was whiter.

Sasuke noticed too, that her chin held a stubborn tilt to it. The folds of her eyelids were prominent from this distance, which he thought made her look somewhat sleepy. And then her mouth…

He had noticed before, and he was now noticing again, that she had a very beautiful mouth. The upper lip was well curved. Her bottom lip was a bit out of proportion to her upper lip but he liked how it was very plump and lush.

And right now, Sasuke was noticing how it had become a rosy color from all the biting she was doing on it.

His palms started to sweat. How would it feel? he wondered. His eyes locked on to her lips, watching in interest as her pink tongue darted out to wet her lips only to retreat again. Her set of straight white teeth appeared to bite on the abused flesh again.

Sasuke's breaths grew shallow. He was feeling sick once more. He should just close his eyes and relax. But his eyes didn't want to close. They watched as the plump flesh of her lips pursed and then worried again, beckoning…

And he could honestly say that it wasn't his fault. It was his complete undoing when his errant, clammy hand suddenly came up and stroked her bottom lip.

It was kind of funny how she abruptly froze, her white eyes widening in surprise. Her hand too, had stopped its ministrations on his own lips. They're eyes met, white to black. Her worrying of her bottom lip had stopped too, Sasuke noted. Wordlessly, he caressed her rosy lips, gently easing her bottom lip from her teeth. He stroked the swollen flesh.

Sluggishly, as if in a dream, he found that he liked how her mouth felt on his fingertips. They were pliant and soft. How would it feel then, on his lips? Slowly, he bent his head closer.

"S-Sasuke…?" she whispered his name uncertainly, sounding as if she was in a trance as well.

He stroked her lips again. "Shhh." He imitated her whisper.

Their lips ghosted over each other. A thrill went up Sasuke's spine. The sensation of her lips over his was more pleasurable than he had expected. Finally, he pressed forward, capturing her lips in his own. It felt like heaven.

His own lips stung from the cut but nothing would stop him from savoring this moment. Without thinking, his hand found her waist and pulled her forward, pressing her front to his. He felt her tremble as she sighed in surrender.

He remembered that he had kissed her in the past, back in the forest. But he had not been truly sober then, and indeed had only remembered it now once he felt her lips again. This time, he fully intended to commit this to memory.

Sasuke pulled back slightly and caressed her lips, brushing it with his. Dimly, he reminded himself that he was kissing someone he claimed to be an enemy. But his hypocrisy was the farthest thing on his mind because right now, his consciousness was filled with her.

Her lips were so soft and pliant as he nibbled against them, making him ache to feel more of her. His senses were slowly being overcome by her sweet scent… Her breathy sighs were all he could hear as it echoed in his ears. He kissed the corners of her mouth and brushed his lips back and forth on hers.

Her face followed his movements, wanting to feel his mouth fully on her own again. Sasuke smirked through their kiss and pulled back.

Hinata's eyes were closed, her kiss swollen lips slightly parted. Sasuke gazed at her, thinking how exquisite she looked. Her milky white eyes opened, dazed. They were so clear that Sasuke saw his reflection on them.

A zing of _something_ passed through his entire being. It was indescribable. His strange sickness was amplified a ten-fold. Oddly however, he didn't mind as much, not with Hinata looking like she did right now. "You are…" _Beautiful._ The damning word resonated within him, ringing in his ears, even if he hadn't said it out loud.

Emotions he couldn't begin to name were fighting for dominance. He didn't know what it was, but one managed to reach the surface. It must have shown in his eyes, Sasuke wasn't sure, but Hinata reacted the only way she knew how. A delicate blush appeared on her cheeks. Unable to resist, he raised a hand up and stroked her face. Both of her hands came up and held his hand.

She gave him her tremulous smile that Sasuke found he was beginning to like. She closed her eyes and sighed, pressing her cheek on his palm.

At that moment, although they didn't acknowledge it out loud, something started to change in their relationship. Deep down, he knew that this change wouldn't help their current situation. Yet, he found himself unable to care.

In his soul, where darkness had lived for so long, there was a dull throb of pain. But he didn't care at the moment. With her holding his hand, Sasuke felt he could take on anything. Being with Hinata now brought a new kind of calm to his soul.

Was this happiness? Sasuke wasn't sure. He had been without this emotion for so very long that he had almost forgotten what it felt like.

His heart felt lighter somehow, as if being near her was something it had always wanted. It was a simple and clean feeling.

The rational part of his mind screamed at him that he was fraternizing with the enemy. But could she still be considered as one? Certainly, you don't go around kissing someone you think was your enemy.

But what of his mission? He couldn't get distracted. _This_ was a distraction.

_Hinata _was a distraction.

Every time she was near him, every time she smiled that stupid smile, his mind just _blanked. _It felt as if his emotions weren't his anymore, and he didn't like it. Not one bit.

Still, he couldn't help the situation they were in now. With Orochimaru out to get her and that blood synthesis linking their lives, he couldn't let her out of his sight. Maybe if she could defend herself... or if there was any way for him to reverse this link…

Hinata opened her eyes and Sasuke saw his expression reflected on them. It was a face of a conflicted man, something he was sure his face didn't show often. Sasuke was a man of action. He knew what he wanted and how to go about to achieve it.

From the moment he swore he'd kill Itachi, his path had been set. He had betrayed and killed just to obtain the power he needed for his revenge. Already, by taking Hinata under his protection, he was swaying from his path. Could he let himself stray more?

His palm tingled from their point of contact. He felt that he was standing on the precipice of something… One wrong step and he feared that he'd fall to the other side and never get out.

Hinata smiled. It was her wobbly, uncertain smile that Sasuke found he liked more and more. His heart thudded painfully within his chest.

And he had to wonder if he had already fallen over the edge.

.

.

.

.

… **To be continued**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Gosh, it's been so long since I updated. I'm really sorry you guys.

On a side note, I edited chapters 1 and 2, nothing major, just fixed the POV to make it more readable. Also, I merged the two prologues. So now, instead of two, you'd only have to read one.

Also, sorry if some were offended by the profanities spoken by the characters, I hope the warning I posted at the beginning was enough. I actually considered changing the rating to M because of it but felt that it would be too drastic. Anyway, there wasn't any smut or anything so I think it was okay to stay with T for now.

Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter. I know I don't update very much but I really appreciate your efforts to review.

To answer some questions

**show. me. the. stars **– Yes, Yugito will play a big part in this fic. Between the three of them (Sasuke, Hinata, and her), I find her the easiest to write since the manga didn't really elaborate on her personality so I could take great liberties with how she interacts with other character. As to your other question, I'm afraid Killerbee wouldn't make an appearance in this fic because I finished the outline of the story even before Kishimoto introduced him. Anyway, I really loved reading your review!

**winterkaguya** – Yugito is the jinchuuriki with the two-tailed bijuu. As to how Sasuke knew Hinata's size… uh… let's just say he's a very good ninja with perfect 20/20 vision. ^_^

To the other reviewers, **Lone Silver Angel****, Jay_chAn, ****frogflower****, fan of your fic, ****Vampire Loser****, ****CutieSOS****, ****La Mariposa3795****, ****.chan****, ww, ****realityfling18****, hinatacg, ****baka dark****, ****La Mariposa3795****, ****xXxDecadencexXx**, and others that have reviewed way back, THANK YOU!

Anyways, leave a review, please?

**Taichou **– Captain


	13. Chapter 12 : Silent Noise :

**Disclaimer:** Naruto is not mine.

**Last Time  
**_Sluggishly, as if in a dream, he found that he liked how her mouth felt on his fingertips. They were pliant and soft. How would it feel then, on his lips? Slowly, he bent his head closer.  
_…  
_He was on the precipice of something… One wrong step would cause him to fall to a place he couldn't ever go out of.  
__She smiled. It was her wobbly, uncertain smile, which Sasuke found that he liked more and more. His heart thudded painfully within his chest.  
__And he had to wonder if he had already fallen over the edge._

_._

_._

* * *

Pathways  
**Chapter 12  
**_Silent Noise_

* * *

.

When Hinata was no more but a child of four, she experimented using her Byakugan to look at the sun. She remembered that her father had been livid over her foolhardiness and that her eyes had smarted for over a week, the image of the sun imprinted on her vision even as her eyes were closed.

His kiss was like that image, burned unto her memory, days after it happened.

She couldn't shake the feeling of it from her mind. It was always present at the back of her consciousness and would surface at the tiniest of provocations. Her concentration was shot.

The fact that she was the only one affected by what happened didn't help her state of mind any.

Sasuke was his usual reticent self. Not a scowl or smile out of place. His impassiveness was making her wonder if she had daydreamed all of what happened, from the moment she entered his room.

His manner towards her remained polite and reserved; it was how one would treat a person masquerading as a relative… which was what they truly were to each other.

At one point, Hinata had thought they became more than casual acquaintances. She even came so far as to hope that they were now allies, however he tried to say otherwise. But now it seemed that they were back to where they were before.

And she had to wonder if they even progressed in the first place. Perhaps it was just her wishful thinking.

But his kiss was _real_. It left an indelible mark on her heart just like how that image of the sun scored her vision long ago.

If she was honest with herself, it stung that he thought nothing of it at all, as if he was the one who had dreamt it and forgotten.

She clutched the file she was holding and frowned.

A heartfelt sigh escaped her lips. "You're sure doing that a lot." A feminine voice said from behind her.

"Oh, Yugito-san, good morning." Hinata tried to make her smile look real.

"Hmm, you alright?" Yugito squinted at her expression, "That smile looks really phony."

Hinata flushed. "I-is it? I'm sorry…"

The Cloud kunoichi ruffled Hinata's hair in annoyance. "What are you apologizing for? Sheesh!"

"U-um…Are you not going on a mission today?"

"So you already want to get rid of me, is that it?" Yugito pouted.

Hinata's eyes widened. "N-no! That's not what I…!"

Yugito guffawed loudly, interrupting her stuttering. "Relax. I'm just joking." She patted Hinata's hair again and turned solemn. "But seriously, is something wrong?"

Hinata really didn't think it was a good idea to tell her troubles to Yugito, a Cloud nin, for fear of blowing her cover. But then again, the kunoichi was her friend; in fact, her only friend here in this cold place. Besides, she highly doubted that the 'sister-brother' spat happening between her and Sasuke would be detrimental to their disguise. She wasn't even sure there _was_ a spat if at all.

"Hinata-chan?" Yugito prompted.

"Yugito-san… it's about my b-brother," Hinata stumbled over the word, "he hasn't been talking to me as of late."

Yugito stroked her chin thoughtfully. "It's that brother of yours again, huh." At Hinata's puzzled look, Yugito explained, "It seems every time that I see you sad, the cause is always Takashi."

Hinata blushed. "A-ano…that's b-because…"

"I know, I know. It's because he's the only family you've got left. Don't worry, I understand."

Hinata bit her lip. She was going to say because Sasuke was the only person she knew there, but was glad Yugito interrupted her or she would have hurt the latter's feelings. It wasn't true that Sasuke was the only person she knew in Kumogakure. Not anymore. She now also had Yugito.

"Hinata-chan, I don't think it's healthy for you to think so much of you brother's behavior." Yugito said. "I mean, isn't he always like that? Not talking and all?"

Well, on hindsight, Sasuke wasn't really a talkative person. When they first met, he hadn't been talking to her at all and it was only in Kumogakure that he had started to have civil conversations with her. Maybe he was thinking of something important that required all his attention. He did say that he had important matters to do in the Cloud Village…

"Anyway, it's almost time for the festival so I'm relieved that I won't be getting missions for this week." At Hinata's confused look, Yugito clarified, "You know, the Ame Festival…?"

Hinata shook her head in the negative, brows slightly furrowed. It was obvious she didn't know what the fuss was all about which Yugito found strange. Wasn't her brother assigned as one of the Ame performers? Kumo ninjas that are particularly good with lightning jutsus were usually assigned as performers for the main event in the Festival. How come he never told his sister about it?

That Takashi dude was really under-valuing his sister. Yugito would be damned if she didn't do anything to remedy the situation.

"Alright that's it! As of today, I'm assigning myself as your personal guide!" Yugito declared, grabbing Hinata's wrist and pulling her away from the file cabinet.

"P-personal guide?" Hinata dug her heels against Yugito's insistent pulling.

"I'm going to show you how we celebrate festivals here in Kumo."

"I c-can't Yugito-san, I still n-need to organize these files." Hinata waved the file she was holding, which Yugito promptly snatched from her hands and haphazardly deposited on an open cabinet. The papers scattered everywhere inside.

Hinata gave a cry of dismay. "Oops, sorry Hina-chan! I promise I'll help you clean up later. For now, let's get up and going!" Yugito laughed loudly and dragged a very reluctant Hinata along.

* * *

Through all of the stuffy coldness in that village nestled in the mountains, Hinata found a hidden warmth residing in each of the villagers. She hadn't noticed this fact until Yugito took to introducing her to each person they came across on their way to the main platform. Her uncle's fate had marred her view of this village, which unfortunately included its villagers, forever painting them in a dark light in her mind. As if they were all after her Byakugan.

Hinata knew this wasn't exactly true. A village wasn't made up of one mold. Just like Konohagakure, Kumogakure was both good and bad. It was unfair of Hinata to think that all of its inhabitants were out to get her.

As the afternoon wore on, Hinata realized that despite the chill in the air, the atmosphere in the village held hints festiveness. It was clear that the Ame Festival held a great significance to this people. Yugito told her it was to thank the Mountain gods for gifting their village with pleasant weather, the rains almost always only drizzles and never so destructive like the ones other villages have. Hinata supposed that although in Konoha, constant rain would be considered as bad luck, light drizzle or not, here in this village where mountains abound, having constant rain in the form of light drizzles was something to be really thankful for.

"And over here we have the platform where the-" Yugito's voice was drifting in and out of Hinata's head. She wondered what Sasuke would be doing during the festival. He hadn't mentioned anything about Kumo holding a festival. Maybe he really did have something to do?

A hand waved in front of her face and Hinata had to blink. Yugito was looking at her with a put-out expression. "Hey Hinata-chan," she whined, dragging out the vowels, "are you even paying attention to me?"

Hinata had to giggle at Yugito's rather comical look. The older ninja pouted even more at this. "I'm s-sorry Yugito-san. It seems that everyone would have a part and I was just thinking what Sasuke would be doing."

"Well, you'd be happy to know that he'll be performing with other shinobi for the main event." Yugito frowned, "Didn't he say anything about it at all?"

Hinata shook her head. "Would you also be performing, Yugito-san?"

"Hah!" Yugito struck a pose, and deflated. "…No."

"But my b-brother…?"

Yugito pouted. "Unfortunately, that emotionally constipated brother of yours is good with lightning jutsus. They picked shinobi with affinity to lightning to perform for the lightning dance."

"Oh…" Well, she had seen Sasuke perform Chidori once or twice now, and it had looked like a pretty difficult technique to master. "And you're not good with lightning jutsus?" Hinata asked in curiosity.

"Haha, I know you look up to me Hina-chan, but sadly, there are things that the great Nii Yugito cannot do." Hinata giggled at her exaggerated expression of sadness. "Well, you know, aside from cook." Yugito winked.

They continued on the tour. Hinata got to see the stage where the lightning dance would be performed. It looked like a circular marble structure, with a pagoda in the middle. The pagoda looked strong enough to hold the performers, but Hinata wondered how they would perform in it.

The two were walking along the walkways where stalls would be built, and Yugito was explaining that they would hold different food and games during the festival, when a noise made them turn around.

Two ninjas were running towards them and disrupting the work of some builders busy with carrying stuff. They stopped to argue with one particularly angry civilian when one of them noticed Yugito and Hinata.

"Nii-taichou!" he yelled and waived.

The other looked up and then bowed profusely to the civilian. The two approached them.

"Oh boy." Yugito exhaled. Hinata gave her a puzzled glance. The cloud kunoichi just gave her an apologetic smile.

"Uhh…Taichou." The ponytailed one began as soon as they were close enough to be heard without yelling.

"What Mori? Are you after trouble again?" Yugito said.

"About that…" The one Yugito addressed as Mori mumbled and Hinata couldn't help give a startled "Eep" when he looked at her suddenly.

"We wanted to apologize!" His companion rushed out.

Hinata was rather confused. Did they do something to Yugito? She glanced at her friend, who looked like she wouldn't tolerate trash from anyone. She gave the two a dubious stare. Come to think of it, these two looked rather familiar…

She gasped. "Y-you two!"

They looked at her then and promptly bowed to her. "Hinata-san, we apologize for our behavior." They said as one.

"B-but you didn't do anything to me…" Hinata said uncertainly.

Yoshi and Mori looked sheepishly at one another then looked at her. "Well you see, about that…" Yoshi said, clearly hesitating.

Mori butted in, "It's about your brother!" he told her. "We're apologizing for hurting your brother."

"Apology not accepted." A voice from the side deadpanned. Hinata blinked, recognizing the voice.

"Sa-sasuke!" Hinata panicked, glancing at the two shinobi who just the other day, were beating him. She didn't want Sasuke to get into another fight.

Yugito scratched her chin. "Takashi! Don't start another fight, alright?"

Sasuke narrowed his gaze at the captain. "I was provoked the first time." He said bluntly and proceeded to ignore her in favor of glaring at the two shinobi. The two shifted uncomfortably in their place, now knowing the reason for Sasuke's ire and feeling appropriately chagrined for it.

"Hinata," Sasuke looked at her, "we need to talk."

"A-alright…" she said, looking at him expectantly. The other three also looked at him.

Sasuke frowned, clearly not wanting to talk in front of an audience. "I've decided to train you from now on." He capitulated.

Hinata didn't know what to make of that. Although people here in this village were under the impression that she was helpless, the truth was she _is _a kunoichi. Did Sasuke think her so incompetent that he wanted to take it upon himself to train her?

"W-why would you do t-that?"

"So you could defend yourself," he said, "especially against perverts." He directed a black stare to Yoshi and Mori, making it clear to everyone present who exactly he thought the perverts were.

"Oh…I see." Innocent as she was, Hinata finally realized why Sasuke got into a fight with the two. If he wanted to train her, days after he got into a fight against Mori and Yoshi, then it was probably because of her that they fought in the first place. The blush that came to her cheeks was instantaneous. What could they have gotten into a fight about her? She wondered.

Yugito probably knew it too, if the sheepish expression on her face was anything to go by. Hinata pursed her lips and gave Yugito a betrayed look.

"I'm sorry Hinata-chan!" Yugito mouthed to her.

"Come." Sasuke said and turned, expecting her to follow.

Hinata chewed her lip and then looked at Yugito, excusing herself, while trying her damndest to avoid looking at the two other sheepish shinobi.

After the siblings left, Yugito turned to her subordinates. "Alright you two, might as well get yourself useful while you're here." She said, gesturing to the civilians who were carrying materials for the festival.

The two protested, this was their only day off, and they wanted to enjoy it. "Suck it up, you deserved a heavier punishment for your disrespect of Hina-chan." Yugito bopped them both on the heads. "Be glad I'm feeling lenient today."

"Aww… Nii-taichou!" Yoshi whined.

* * *

Their training had started as soon as they got home.

Hinata frowned, Yugito definitely knew what really went on that day Sasuke, Yoshi, and Mori fought, but she was still refusing to tell Hinata about it, instead telling her to go ask her brother. Hinata snorted internally. As if he'd ever tell her.

But what Hinata already knew and Sasuke wasn't saying, was that the training wasn't merely to fend off 'perverts'. It was also to defend herself against Orochimaru and Kabuto, who she was sure were still after her. Them staying in Kumo managed to at least give her a semblance of normalcy, and along with it, the illusion of safety. But if Sasuke was pushing her to improve her skills, then that only meant that they weren't safe here.

Nor anywhere else.

Hinata took a drink of her water. The other day, Sasuke had complimented her defensive jutsu. It was the same one she had used to fight him that day he came to kidnap her. It had seemed a lifetime ago, but Hinata knew it had only been a few months since it happened.

But her chakra had fluctuated then, making it easy for him to break the protective barrier she had made. It seemed that her problem then, was still her problem now. Sasuke had critiqued her low chakra reserves, correctly guessing that she hadn't built her stamina up to par.

Going with that analysis, he had started to train her endurance, so as to build-up her chakra reserves. He had also started to spar with her and even though Hinata knew he wasn't going all out on her, her body still protested the abuse it received everytime they sparred.

Currently, they were on a break, having been practicing on taijutsu techniques, another of her weak spots since she hadn't really been trained on strength. The Gentle Fist technique was more on speed and flexibility, mostly relying on the Byakugan to target weak spots and chakra points.

But Sasuke had said that merely knowing the Gentle Fist wouldn't be enough, especially for opponents who are inanimate or have no chakra system.

Sasuke was sitting beside her, rubbing his face with a towel. Hinata suppressed a smile. It had only been a week since they started training, and Sasuke didn't even break a sweat the first few times they sparred. Now at least he was sweating a little.

Or maybe he was tired from all the practicing he was doing for the lightning dance? Hinata wondered as she looked up at the sun's position (what sun there was in Cloud Village) and gauged the time to be about half past four. Come to think of it, it was almost time for Sasuke to go. He hadn't mentioned his part in the festival, but she knew that he was going out everytime they finished with sparring to go practice for the dance.

"Um…" she started articulately. Sasuke gave a mildly interested glance. "I-is this the l-last day for practicing the d-dance?"

His interest disappeared quickly. "That's none of your business."

She was about to apologize when she saw his flushed face. He was probably embarrassed to be talking about 'dancing'. Hinata remembered Kiba and Shino avoided anything to do with it. It seemed even Uchiha Avengers share common characteristics with other males, Hinata extrapolated, fighting the urge to giggle. What would he look like dancing? Hinata very much doubted the dance he was giving all his time to would even remotely resemble the traditional partnered dances in Konoha.

Hinata instead gave him a smile, one that shocked Sasuke for he stared at her, his expression going completely blank.

The kunai embedded on the trunk they were leaning against caught her attention and she moved to pull it out. She fingered the kunai, it glinted black in the sunlight.

Silence stole over them both, like it normally did every time they were occupied with their own thoughts. It used to be an oppressive silence, suffocating in its quality, where Hinata constantly felt that she needed to fill it up with sound somehow. But as she got to know Sasuke, she realized that he liked quiet, just as she did. Now she treasured these silences between them, for it allowed her thoughts to roam, without demanding attention.

And it was in this silence, as she toyed with the metal on her hands, that she remembered that day long ago in the academy. Maybe…

"I n-never did thank you, f-for that t-time…" She began, feeling the intensity of his gaze at the side of her face. "I w-was having difficulties w-with the t-throwing lessons and y-you gave me t-tips. It r-really helped. You probably d-don't even r-remember, but…"

She looked at him and smiled, feeling a bit giddy to be actually thanking him at last. "Thank you, Sasuke. Thank you for e-everything."

Sasuke gave her an odd look, a red tinge on his cheeks and quickly averted his eyes. He didn't say anything so Hinata thought that the discussion was over. She, however, felt lighter, finally having the courage to speak her mind for once without any provocation, even if it was about something trivial.

Then, Sasuke spoke, "It was only a basic kunai trick that I learned from home. I probably only wanted to show off…" He trailed off.

He turned to her, "But if it helped you…" his onyx eyes bore into own eyes, "then you're welcome, Hinata." Her name was a caress on his lips and Hinata couldn't help the shiver that ran up her spine when she heard it.

She blinked huge eyes at him as he stood up and dusted his pants. She probably should say something, but she was struck dumb that he had even remembered that day. Hinata thought it too insignificant an event to remember in light of the events that happened right after it.

Had he waited for her to thank him all this time?

Or was it she that has waited for confirmation that he remembered something important to her?

Her heart-ached all the same, perhaps for something she couldn't ever have, as she stared at his retreating back.

.

.

.

.

**To be continued.**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Hi, I'm back! And back for good, I hope. I finally got into gear, went and finished this story somehow. I want to finish my other story "Tragedy" but I wanted to get the chapters for this story typed first before I do anything else. I guess that's my motivation right there, heh heh.

Well, nothing much to say really, except that I plan to update every other Sunday. This story is already drafted on paper, and I could safely say that it would have 20 chapters and an epilogue. This is chapter 12, so there are 8 more chapters to go before the epilogue.

Thanks so much to those who have stuck with this story, even through the (almost, if I remember correctly) two year hiatus.

Again, reviews are much appreciated! And who knows, it might make me produce the chapters faster :)


	14. Chapter 13 : Of Smut and Distractions :

**Disclaimer:** Naruto is not mine.

**Last Time**

_Sasuke frowned, clearly not wanting to talk in front of an audience. "I've decided to train you from now on." He capitulated.  
_…  
_She looked at him and smiled, feeling a bit giddy to be actually thanking him at last. "Thank you, Sasuke. Thank you for e-everything."  
_…  
_Had he waited for her to thank him all this time?  
__Or was it she that has waited for confirmation that he remembered something important to her?  
__Her heart-ached all the same, perhaps for something she couldn't ever have, as she stared at his retreating back._

_._

_._

* * *

Pathways  
**Chapter 13  
**_Of Smut and Distractions_

* * *

.

Sasuke was done with practice, _finally._ It wasn't overly difficult; he had barely broken a sweat, but…

He had been a tad distracted during practice. Okay, scratch that, he was distracted, not only during practice, but almost every time.

Every time something would remind him of Hinata.

It had started after that kiss they shared in his bedroom. Sasuke didn't really know what the big deal was; it wasn't the first time he'd kissed her…

Granted he was a quite out of it and didn't know what he was doing when he kissed her the first time. But a kiss was still a kiss. It doesn't matter if he only remembered bits and pieces of it.

Yeah. Right. Sasuke inwardly cringed.

_It was a horrible first kiss_, he admitted to himself. But at least it wasn't as horrible as the kiss he'd rather sooner forget than remember, the one that happened while he was still at the academy.

Now the kiss they'd recently shared… It was…

Distracting. That's what it was. And so Sasuke had done his best to put it to the back of his mind. He figured that if he pretended that nothing of the sort happened, then he could go back to the way he had been before.

Focused and definitely _not_ distracted.

But the softness of her lips, and her unique scent, was forever imprinted on his mind. He would look at her, and the sensations that came over while he held her in his arms, would once again crash into him, wreaking havoc in his mind and body. He sounded like a sap, even to his own mind.

And she was always there. It wasn't hard to avoid her at HQ, but it was really difficult to do so in their tiny apartment. Everything about her distracts him; her eyes, her porcelain skin—that he remembered to be as smooth as silk—even her hair and lips. Especially her lips.

Every time she would nibble or chew on them in uncertainty, Sasuke would feel himself come undone. He wanted to be the one to bite them for her.

Sasuke had never felt like this before. _Urgh!_ More to the point, he had never felt like a pervert before. Did this make him similar to the heroes in the smutty books Kakashi always read in public?

Did this mean he was…a lech?

Sasuke shook his head and concentrated on navigating the stalls being built for the festival, on his way home. And she had thanked him. It was the final nail in his proverbial coffin. The moment she had smiled that wobbly smile he was getting (really) fond of, he literally heard the sound of the nail hitting home.

This has got to stop.

He had made up his mind to train her because he wanted her to be able to defend herself when they go their separate ways. Sasuke had one last thing to do here in Kumo after which they would have to leave for the borders. And then, after that, he'd follow any leads on Itachi. Without Hinata.

It was high time she returned to Konoha. Sasuke lost all interest in attaining her Byakugan. He didn't need it when he had the more powerful Sharingan at his disposal. Screw the Blood Synthesis, it wasn't doing anything but cause him to lose sleep. He would defeat Itachi with what resources he had at his disposal.

With her out of the way, he would once again be able to focus on mission. It was the point of all this fiasco in the first place.

Speaking of fiascos…

He stared in disgust at the sticky mess on his hair and clothes. Damn goof offs. Thanks to their antics, he was covered in paint. They better pray that it washes off easy.

"Tadaima." He muttered to the air around him as soon as he opened the creaky door to their apartment. It didn't seem like Hinata was back yet so he felt more at ease. Not that he didn't always feel at ease. _Just, yeah…_

Stripping of his ruined top on the way to the bathroom, his hand was already reaching for the knob when it opened.

Revealing a very (wet) shocked Hinata on the other side, wearing a only a (skimpy and wet) towel, that (barely) reached her thighs.

They both stood there, waiting for each other's reactions. Sasuke found it awfully hard to keep his eyes above her neck, and he probably let them stray a couple times. This was really, really bad for his sanity.

Steam from her bath wafted out and clung to Sasuke's bare torso and he could bet his katana that _that_ was steam he was seeing coming out of her ears. Already not the most articulate of individuals—a succinct "yes" or "no" usually did the trick—Sasuke couldn't find words to break the (extreme) awkwardness of the situation.

So he resorted to the most prized word in his repertoire. "Hn…?" That came out sounding more uncertain than he intended. Should he, like, apologize? He frowned. She frowned. They stared at each other some more. Her flush started, from below (way below) the hemline of the towel covering her (ample) bust, past her collarbone (cleavage) and neck, to the apples of her cheeks. _Interesting, _he observed. Then.

_Slam!_

The door almost clipped him on the nose. Sasuke jerked back, a little surprised (and a bit intimidated, although he wasn't really sure, cause, really? Him, get intimidated? _Pfft!_) that she had the guts to slam the door on his face. _The hell?_ It wasn't like he was the one who opened the door (though he was about too).

He scratched at his itchy scalp. _Tch, girls._ If they didn't want to be seen wearing a (little, tiny) towel, they should change before coming out of the bath. Still…

Sasuke looked sullenly at the door, guilt—what he could feel of it anyway—was niggling at his conscience. He sighed and bumped his forehead on the door, leaving streaks of paint on it.

"Hinata," he said, only loud enough that he was sure she could hear it from the other side of the wood, "gomen."

She didn't reply, not that he was expecting her too.

It was with an itchy scalp and congealed paint on his hair that found Sasuke lying on his futon, waiting for his turn on the bathroom. He was staring moodily up the ceiling when Hinata knocked on his door. "S-sasuke? You can use the b-bath now."

He got up and opened the door, feeling a sense of déjà vu from the way they were again facing and staring at each other—only now they had proper clothes on. He waited for her to step aside so he could get to his bath but she didn't budge. "What?" he said, irritated.

"A-ano…" she began, looking mightily uncomfortable with him glaring down at her. He was a bit spiteful, he had to admit. "I wanted to uh…apologize. F-for closing the d-door on you earlier."

He waited for her darting eyes to look up at him. When he finally had her undivided attention.

_Slam!_

He slammed the door on her face. Now, _that_ was petty. But it was his revenge and now Sasuke felt a bit better about the world.

Waiting only for a few seconds, he opened the door again. She was still standing there, wearing a stupid (cute) frown on her face. He smirked. "You're forgiven. Now, please move."

She blinked stupidly (cutely) and shuffled to the side. Sasuke couldn't help the swagger in his step as he went to the bathroom. It was the most satisfying seven steps he ever took in his life.

.

* * *

.

A boy with blonde hair was sitting alone on a swing. All around, there were children laughing and playing with each other.

Sasuke watched the sad boy from behind a tree. He wanted to go and sit on the other swing and speak with the blonde but he felt so shy.

Did he even know that Sasuke existed?

The scene slowly faded and the tree trunk Sasuke was hiding behind transformed into a training log. He was hitting it with his palms, each strike more painful than the last.

He'd stop and look despairingly at his weak hands, hands that were so weak they bled easily and hurt badly.

Why was he so weak?

His vision began to blur, with tears or fatigue, he didn't know, but the ground was coming up fast, and the sky tilted with it.

The _thud_ echoed around Sasuke's ears as he jerked awake.

The night was silent but the echoes of his dream reverberated around his head until the sun peaked over the horizon.

.

* * *

.

The kunai stopped inches from her neck.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Hinata. They had been sparring for only a few minutes. It wasn't long enough for her to tire. But there it was. Her breathing was shallow and her face looked worn out. Could it possibly be because of the dark circles under her eyes?

The same dark circles were under his too, he was sure.

"Didn't sleep well?" He asked her.

"I had a nightmare." She panted and took her own kunai out to deflect the one pointed at her. It flew out of his grasp and embedded on the ground several feet away.

His expression might have given away his curiosity for she continued without being prompted. "I kept dreaming I was drowning. I-I'd wake up, but as soon as I fall asleep, the d-dream would continue."

"Hn." Sasuke launched himself at her, drawing his katana out. She dodge-rolled out of the way, and jumped away from him.

It seemed like they both didn't get enough sleep because of their dreams.

If his dreams were anything to go by, he was pretty sure why she dreamt of drowning. And Sasuke didn't want to delude himself into thinking that it was not Hinata's memories that kept him awake all night.

Because really, who in their right mind would have so many memories of the dobe?

Sasuke thought of calling their training to a halt but her slipping into another Jyuuken stance changed his mind. It was clear that she's not up to par today. And she had been improving, make no mistake about it. Regardless, if she thinks she could handle things, then he'd humor her. He hefted his katana, slipped it back on its scabbard, and settled into his own fighting stance.

They attacked each other with renewed ferocity. She was a lot stronger on her attacks than when they first started their sparring sessions. It was a little hard to admit but Sasuke was starting to exert efforts on not to get hit with a chakra laden hand. His first encounter with her Gentle fist technique (she had landed a lucky one on him) was too troublesome to even repeat.

A particularly vicious strike from her made Sasuke grunt and she looked up at him, startled. And that was when he saw it.

It was so very brief, but he saw it.

The Sharingan on her own eyes.

Was it even possible that the Blood Synthesis was starting to work? He couldn't imagine how he even saw it since she was wearing black contact lenses. Could his mind be playing tricks on him?

Sasuke pulled away. "We stop here." He said, halting their training. The Hyuuga nodded. Sasuke watched her catch her breath and move to sit.

Maybe the synthesis was starting to work. And Sasuke didn't want that. What's the point anyway? It was meant for Orochimaru to use so he designed it in a way that wouldn't require Sasuke at all.

And he'd be damned if he let that snake take control of his body. More to the point, the Blood Synthesis working meant that their lives are even more connected now. If Hinata somehow managed to let herself die, then that'd mean that he'd die too.

She had to become stronger to avoid this.

He approached her. Her eyes were huge on her face as she looked up at him, the very picture of naivety. Sasuke scoffed in disgust. This naiveté of hers would eventually get her killed. Would get them _both_ killed.

She had improved, but it was still not enough. A little improvement meant nothing to the likes of Orochimaru or Itachi.

"Your attacks have improved but still weak." He told her. "If you want to survive a battle against Orochimaru or Kabuto, train. More."

"I…" she said, "I know. I _want_ to become stronger." She stood up and looked him in the eyes. "I want to protect my precious people."

_Protect?_ He remembered the first time he actually noticed she existed. It was on the day he kidnapped her. She was together with a bunch of academy brats and she had fought her damndest to 'protect' them too. Of course, that attempt failed spectacularly well.

Who was she to want to protect? She could barely defend herself and she wanted to protect others? _Maybe stupidity really was catching…_

She pursed her lips at his disbelieving look and said more forcefully (as forceful as a mousy girl like her could get anyway) "I _will_ train more. And then I _will_ become stronger." Her hands fisted at her sides, he saw. "I-I never get back on m-my words. That is my ninja way!"

She had said this with such conviction that Sasuke _almost_ believed her. Here was a weak person saying that she wanted to be strong for the weak. And he, Sasuke, was someone strong. He wanted to be stronger.

It was his goal to be the strongest.

He wanted this, so that he could crush Itachi, _his brother_—the only family he had left—someone who used to be precious to him.

This truth, something he had known all along but refused to acknowledge, left a bitter taste in his mouth. It had always been a hard pill to swallow. And here was Hinata, standing in front of him, looking at him as if she could hear his thoughts.

Looking at him in sympathy. Sympathy he absolutely has no use for.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke." She said.

Which was the last straw. "You have no right…" he muttered through clenched teeth.

He wanted to rail at her, scream at her. Blame her even, for all the hurt. Heck, he would blame anyone at this point. But who was he kidding? The very last person who should apologize for his clan's misfortune was her.

The very last person who deserved his ire was her.

The fight quickly left him, before it even had the chance to build. He found himself frowning at her in displeasure. "Shut up." He told her tersely. "You apologize too much."

"B-but I just want to-"

"I said-!" he forcibly cut himself off. He ran his hand through his dark hair and sighed. There was a resigned tone in his voice when he continued, "I'm going out for awhile."

"O-okay…" he heard her say. There could be more to it, but Sasuke didn't stick around to find out.

He wasn't one to drown his sorrows in alcohol. But maybe it was time to get a new pastime.

It was either that or start investing in smutty books.

.

.

.

.

**To be continued.**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Yeah, so this chapter's done. I'm not really sure I liked how this went, writing this chapter was like pulling teeth, hence the shortness. It was the part I really wished I wouldn't have to write but needed to write anyway. Haaahhh… The plot needed it, so.

Anyway, thanks to those who reviewed!

**show. me. the. stars,**** xxtsubasaofhopexx****, ****l'Ollonais Sephiria Chronos****, ****BleachedBlueCat21****, ****FallenRaindrops****, ****ByakuganHyuuga360****, ****ppeach2****, ****MeltYouWithOneKiss****, ****LM3795****, ****dumdeedu****m, ****flooding-rivers****, ****Hana-01****, ****Reading-girl23****, kiya, and ****Aquachar****m**

Your comments really fired up my motivation to continue this story! As promised, I posted this chapter 2 weeks after the last one. I'll have another chapter ready for you next _next_ Sunday.

Okay, please review! It gives me more inspiration :)


	15. Chapter 14 : And There Was Moon :

**Disclaimer:** Naruto is not mine.

**Last Time**

_His expression might have given away his curiosity for she continued without being prompted. "I kept dreaming I was drowning. I-I'd wake up, but as soon as I fall asleep, the d-dream would continue."_

…

_A particularly vicious strike from her made Sasuke grunt and she looked up at him, startled. And that was when he saw it._

_It was so very brief, but he saw it._

_The Sharingan on her own eyes._

…

_She pursed her lips at his disbelieving look and said more "I will train more. And then I will become stronger." Her hands fisted at her sides, he saw. "I-I never get back on m-my words. That is my ninja way!"_

_._

_._

* * *

Pathways  
**Chapter 14  
**_And There Was Moon_

* * *

.

It was raining again. It seemed to Hinata that there are only two seasons in Kumogakure. There was cloudy. Then, there was cloudy with rain.

Hinata sat beside the windowsill, watching the rain drizzle down on the empty streets and waiting for Sasuke to return. He had left so abruptly, she wondered if what she said had upset him.

_What __are __you __thinking? __Of __course __it __had __upset __him!_

But still… she didn't say it to make him mad. She was just…

_Just __being __true __to __myself._

Sasuke always said that she apologized too often, maybe that was what had set him off? She pouted at her hazy reflection on the window. Still, it was rather shallow to get angry over something like that. Maybe she'd just apologize to him once he got back. Right, that's what she would do.

She'd apologize for apologizing too much… That would really go over well.

Hinata sighed in defeat, the glass in front of her fogging over.

Lifting a finger, she wiped the moisture. Her eyes drifted their focus to the deserted streets, looking, hoping for a glimpse of messy raven hair.

She wished for the rain to stop.

There were days when the sun peeked over the overcast clouds. But those were very rare and very short lived. Few and far between.

It was always cold. Gloomy. The endless sound of pattering raindrops on the roofs and pavements long ago ceased to be comforting. Kumogakure was always gray and the drab scent of rain was overpowering, until it was all she could smell..

Hinata didn't like it here at all.

She missed feeling the sun on her skin. The glow of it behind her closed lids always dazzled her eyes but she loved it.

She liked the smell of the grass as it baked under the sun's rays. She missed the warmth and smell of vapor in the air. She missed the brilliant colors of the trees and flowers glinting under the sunlight. She missed…

_Konoha._

Hinata smiled wistfully.

She wanted nothing more than to get back home. To see her family again. To once again laugh with her friends. To once again be able to teach her pupils.

Hinata missed her home.

And through all this, Hinata wondered if Sasuke ever missed it. He had been gone longer than she. She had only been away for a few months, and he had been gone for years.

Did he ever miss their village?

She supposed he did. Hinata remembered his melancholy look back when they were still on their way to Kumo. He looked so alone, as if he was thinking of something—someone?—that was out of reach.

And then she had to wonder, did he ever miss his family?

What a silly question. _There__'__s __no __doubt __that __he __does._ He probably felt their absence all the more because he knows he'd never be able to see them. In her case, she knows that her family was safe and sound in Konoha, but that doesn't make her stop missing them.

However Sasuke… Sasuke didn't have that reassurance. He didn't have a family waiting for him. He _must_ miss them.

She could only speculate on the depth of his sorrow. But she wanted to at least ease it up in her own way.

_That's why I…_

Oh certainly, it wouldn't be hard to escape. Sasuke was always out doing missions for HQ that he wouldn't even know if she decided to just up and run. Hinata was sure he thought she didn't have enough courage to do it, but she does.

There was the one day, a few days after she had signed on to work in HQ, that Hinata was sent outside the village, together with a bunch of civilians, to get supplies. Vividly, she remembered standing at the threshold of the path leading back to the village. It would have been so easy to escape then. To return to the village and forget everything that had happened. Forget any association she may have had with Uchiha Sasuke.

She had hesitated. Torn. She recalled looking back and gazing at the path she could take to her freedom. Then she had contemplated that road back to Kumo, back to the village where the people after her eyes were residing.

Back where Sasuke was.

And that pretty much made up her mind.

What she lacked was reason—motivation really—to escape. It was stupid, and perhaps he had always been right when he told her she was an idiot to fraternize with the enemy, but she didn't want to escape.

She didn't want to leave Sasuke behind.

_He…he is…_

He was an indifferent jerk. That's what he was. A jerk. Hinata pursed her lips in a thin line, remembering how he had just stood there while she was in nothing but a towel. He even had the gall to peek. He probably thought that he was being sneaky about it too. She had really been mad at him and couldn't help but slam the door on his face. She had apologized right after, not because she was sorry for having slammed the door on his face, but because she had almost squashed his nose in the process.

Yes, he acted apathetic most of the time.

_But he's also…_

Caring and sweet. In his own indifferent jerkish way. He had cared for her when she was sick, had carried her on his back for miles (although he had called her name weak sounding afterward). He even trained her, albeit for his own personal gain. Still.

Sasuke was not perfect. He wasn't the cool prince the girls back at Konoha fantasized and swooned over. He wasn't kind, he wasn't heroic. He rarely even smiled, if at all.

And he wasn't Naruto.

That was the crux of it. He wasn't her childhood crush. And yet.

Naruto had been a goal, a vision for a weak girl to gaze upon. In her childish naiveté, she had elevated him to a pedestal so high he was more an apparition of her hopes and dreams, than the boy who had sat beside her in class.

Naruto was so different from the dark brooding Uchiha.

_And yet._

Hinata couldn't find it in herself to care. He was Sasuke to her; aloof, indifferent Sasuke, with all his faults and emotional baggage.

And it was because of his imperfections that he seemed all the more real. Real enough for her to touch; real enough that she could reach out to him…and perhaps, someday…

He would reach out to her too.

Hinata knew she must be stupid for feeling like this. Could she be a masochist, to wish for such heartache?

But then, could a person control their heart? Could she have done the stupid thing and fallen in love with him? Could there be another explanation for the butterflies in her stomach and the skipping of her heart? She had always felt like this around Naruto… and yet not.

It wasn't completely the same.

And there was no one here, only her thoughts and the darkness. As long as it doesn't come out of her mouth, who would say that it had really happened?

_That's why I..._

_._

* * *

_._

It was near midnight when Sasuke came back. Hinata was inside her room, and already lying on her futon when she heard him come in. She couldn't sleep.

There was a loud thud coming from the wall connecting their rooms. Hinata sat up on her futon and listened. He was probably starting to prepare for bed, she thought. Maybe it was the best time to apologize to him? She chewed on her lip, undecided.

On the one hand, she could just apologize tomorrow. On the other, tomorrow, she might have lost her nerve already.

Then there was the simple matter of being unable to sleep until she had cleared things up between them. Hinata sighed, frustrated with herself.

Kiba would surely have told her to just hustle and get it over with if he was here now. Shino would… he would stare at her until she just went and apologized. Kurenai-sensei would smile and encourage her. Then Akamaru's barks will give her the extra boost in confidence she needed.

She giggled despite herself. _Well, __it__'__s __now __or __never._

Decision made, Hinata stood up and marched directly to Sasuke's room. She raised her hand to knock, and hesitated. He could already be asleep. What if he got annoyed with her for disturbing him?

But Sasuke just came back; he couldn't possibly be already asleep. _Could __he?_ He's a light sleeper, she reasoned. Maybe she didn't have to knock at all.

Perhaps she could just…apologize without knocking?

She chewed her lip again and made up her mind to just give it a go. She knocked. Once.

There wasn't an answer. She knocked again.

Still no answer.

Well…it's not as if she expected any reply, really. Should she just do it tomorrow?

Hinata shook her head. No, she was here now. She's going to finish this.

Her knuckles rapped again on the door, Hinata leaned forward and pitched her voice to be heard over the wood.

"S-Sasuke are you awake?" she started uncertainly, "I-I just w-want to apologize for earlier. I don't regret anything that I said…only that I've offended you in the process." Huh…talking to wood was actually harder than talking to Sasuke—believe it or not. She never realized.

"I-I know that I wouldn't fully understand the things you went through…but…" she let her forehead bump the wood, "Please believe me when I say that I will become stronger. I w-will Sasuke. For my precious people, and that…" Should she say it? Dare she?

"…and that includes you!" It came out a little rushed and angry sounding, but there! She'd said it. And without stuttering too!

There was no telling if he was awake (she was hoping he wasn't) or if he had heard her at all if he was awake. But she'd said _it._ It wasn't such a big confession, to be sure, but she couldn't help feeling unaccountably pleased with herself.

Now it was just a matter of seeing what Sasuke would do with that information. She was still hoping he hadn't heard anything.

A smile spread on her face, her heart giddy with the rush of confessing (?). Now she could sleep, probably.

Turning around, she made to go back to her room. And collided with a wall. Hinata brought her hands up to push back but was surprised to feel warm flesh instead of cold cement.

Surprised, she blinked up and was met with a pair of onyx eyes staring down at her intently.

Sasuke wasn't in his room at all. Had he been standing there the whole time she was talking to the door? Hinata felt her face flame in mortification.

"Sa-Sa-Sasuke!" her stutter was back, and it was back with a vengeance it seemed. "I-I was…!"

Sasuke's intense gaze melted into intense amusement. Amusement at her expense, apparently. _Maybe __he __hadn__'__t __been __standing __there __the __whole __time?_ Hinata desperately hoped so. _Maybe __he __hadn__'__t __heard __anything?_

Her eyes widened when Sasuke reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. Goosebumps broke out of her skin when he let his fingers glide down her bare arm and then reach past her elbows towards the doorknob.

A corner of his lips tilted up. His breath, which smelled slightly of alcohol mixed with toothpaste, fanned on her face as he leaned down. "If you were wondering," he bent forward, Hinata felt his hair graze her ears, "I heard _all_ of it," his husky voice whispered near her ear. There was a swarm of butterflies in her tummy again, and Hinata felt faint, light-headed.

The click of the knob turning and Sasuke's murmured, "Excuse me," barely registered to Hinata. Nor the way Sasuke slinked smugly into his room. She definitely didn't notice when he closed the door.

It took a while for her to get her bearings back in order. But when they did, she could only stare mutely at his closed door, wondering if that was a smile on his lips that she saw just then.

_._

* * *

_._

The next day, Yugito accosted Hinata in the file room and asked her if she could take a break as she wanted to show her something.

Yugito led her to an outcropping overseeing the expanse of mountainous ranges enclosing Kumo in a protective barrier. Hinata had known beforehand that Kumo was one of the tightly guarded hidden villages in the Fire Country. But unlike any other ninja village, which relied on its manpower, Kumo relied mostly on nature. Kumogakure was a veritable fortress with its mountain ranges.

"It's nice huh." Yugito stretched her arms out and inhaled deeply. "This is where I go to whenever I want to think. You don't get to hear much whining here."

Hinata nodded in agreement and followed Yugito's example, taking a huge lungful of air and releasing it in a cleansing breath. The sun was at the horizon, casting its orange glow over the treetops. It was actually kind of nice, Hinata thought, especially with the rain having just subsided.

"See those ranges?" Yugito pointed at the mountains. "Those mark the edge of Kumo. No one comes up by this side. It's a hard climb up, not to mention that the area isn't very hospitable to living things."

Hinata marveled at the vastness of it. She was looking a little ways down when she noticed a ledge just below them. "What's under there Yugito-san?"

The Kumo nin hummed. "Oh, that. It leads to a tunnel which was once used to draw up water from below the mountains. A sort of aqueduct." Yugito sighed, "I would go there if I could stand the gloominess, hehe. Anyway!"

Hinata leaned away and gulped when the taller woman leaned down at her. "While we're on the subject…"

The leaf nin furrowed her brows, "Umm…aqueducts?"

Yugito guffawed with laughter. "You crack me up Hina-chan. No, I'm actually talking about your brother."

"You…you are?" Hinata tried to recall if Sasuke's name had come up anywhere in their conversation.

"What do you think came over him? He seems less gloomy than usual." The woman plowed on, oblivious to Hinata's bemused expression. "I swear I even saw him smile once. It's creepy." She faked a shiver.

Hinata felt herself giggling over Yugito's finding Sasuke's "smile" creepy. "Um…are you sure he wasn't just smirking?"

"Eh, now that you mentioned it, he could be. I dunno, the room was kind of dim and it was gone quickly so I didn't really get to ogle it." Yugito shrugged, which Hinata knew by then to interpret as the end of the discussion. "Have you two fixed your sibling spat then?"

_Ah__…_There was always a method to Yugito's random comments. A person just had to keep up to find out, or have patience. In this case, she wanted to make sure that Hinata and Sasuke weren't still arguing. They weren't, as far as last night went.

At this, she couldn't help but flush, which Yugito caught judging by the sly grin now aimed at her.

"Tell me Hinata-chan, do you have someone you consider to be special?"

The question caught her off-guard, she wondered if this was another of Yugito's seemingly random questions. She stared at the orange rays and thought 'why not?', she could answer this. White eyes squinted against the sun and Hinata found herself shielding them from the glare.

"I-I used to…He was like the sun to me, always shining and casting his light." Hinata began.

Yugito leaned her back against the ledge and got comfortable. "Not anymore?"

"He is still my sun but...I couldn't bring myself to look at him. He was too bright for my eyes." It was true. She loved Naruto. Still love him in fact, but not like before.

"I realize that," Hinata paused and turned to smile at her friend, "I could always admire the sun. I don't need to look at it to know that it's there." And that was what her friendship with Naruto was like. They don't always talk or see each other, but she knows that he'll always be there for her. Her love for Naruto would always be there, but it was tempered now, so unlike the burning she felt for him when they were younger.

There were other kinds of love, Hinata knew now. Her childhood love was really just that, a child's love.

Yugito looked at Hinata, and for a moment, she felt that she was being weighed somehow, considered. "You love someone else, don't you?" It was said in a manner that was close to a revelation than that of a statement and Hinata felt herself quite surprised that she agrees.

Her exposed feelings swelled with the rising of her blush and it found herself unable to speak. Spoken out loud, Hinata couldn't find it in herself to deny the truth which echoed around her head and resonated within her heart.

She loved _him_.

And there should be happiness here somehow, Hinata thought, because Naruto always did make her happy. But then, didn't she just acknowledge that it was a different love altogether? Maybe this…

A hand came up and pressed the place where her heart was. There was an ache there and for the life of her, she didn't understand why. Why did it hurt?

"Hey Hina-chan, don't cry." Came Yugito's soft and panicked voice.

White eyes blinked and Hinata felt her cheeks. Felt the wetness there. She didn't even realize that she had started crying.

Arms enfolded her. Hinata found herself leaning into the warm embrace and sniffled. "There there," Yugito cooed, stroking her hair.

The softness of her friend's embrace made more tears slip from her eyes. She doesn't deserve Yugito's kindness for her deception, but Hinata couldn't find it in herself to push away. Her heart was throbbing painfully, and Yugito's soft comfort lessened the ache.

"A wise person once told me, that when a heart is overfilled with love," Yugito gently cupped Hinata's face a wiped a tear with her thumb, "some may spill from the eyes."

Hinata gave Yugito a teary smile. Through the blur of her tears, she could almost see a whiskered grin intersperse with that of Yugito's. "I th-think you're somehow like my s-sun, Yugito-san. You shine with your own light."

"Heh, does that mean my awesomeness blinds you too?" came the joking reply.

Hinata giggled, wiping her tears. "It dazzles a little."

The smile widened and then it turned contemplative. "I wasn't always shiningly awe inspiring you know." Yugito patted Hinata's head and stepped away. "There was a time when no one would even glance at me. But I persisted. It was hard but I earned their respect in the end." The older woman smiled. "Do you know why the sun shines?"

Hinata blinked at the random question. "Why?"

"Because people need its light." Yugito winked at her. "Someday, I'm sure you'll be your own sun to someone."

Yugito said this with utmost certainty that Hinata found it difficult not to believe her.

_._

* * *

_._

Back home, Hinata was preparing supper when Sasuke came in. Her softly uttered 'okaeri' came largely ignored as he silently prowled towards her. Even though he was as silent as always, she could tell that he was clearly in a snit.

His dark brows were furrowed together when he approached her. He leaned over the kitchen counter. "Where were you?" he asked her without preamble.

A little surprised by his proximity, and still rattled by her earlier revelation, Hinata stuttered, "I w-was with Yugito-san. W-were you looking f-for me?"

The question seemed to take him off-guard because his face cleared somewhat and he took a step back. "N-no. Why would I look for you?" he muttered. "Anyway, I was thinking that we should go eat out," he said, eyeing the chopped potatoes in front of her.

_Like a d-d-date?_

The thought made her blush.

They had been living in Kumo for a while now and not once had Sasuke ever asked her to go out of the house with him, they save for going to HQ together. Had she heard him right? Hinata wanted to ask him to repeat himself but she was afraid he'd deny having invited her in the first place.

He must have taken her silence as refusal because he hurried to say, "I was just wondering." She looked up to see a red tint on his cheekbones, though it could be the lighting in the room because she could swear that Sasuke never blushes. "You don't have to come if you don't feel like it, I could go by myself."

Sasuke looked so uncertain that Hinata couldn't help but find it adorable. She just knew that if she said it out loud, he'd be really annoyed at her.

He glared at her. "Whatever." And proceeded to go back the way he had come.

This time, she couldn't help smiling a little bit. So he really did ask her out, which would also explain why he had been looking for her. Sasuke may be a jerk most days, but he could also be an adorable jerk if he wanted too. Although she wouldn't say that to his face. He might decide to just be a jerk otherwise.

"Wait!" Hinata called out to him once he had his hand on the door. He stopped he turned to glower.

She smiled sheepishly. "Let me j-just cover these potatoes."

His eyes darted to the tubers and frowned. He crossed his arms. "Make it quick."

Hinata beamed at him and proceeded to store the potatoes. She wondered where Sasuke would be taking her. As it was their first time going out together, perhaps he'd take her somewhere private and (blush) romantic.

_._

* * *

_._

Sasuke took her to a family diner.

She supposes that it made sense, since they were posing as siblings. Still, Hinata couldn't help the stab of disappointment in her chest. It was stupid to fantasize about a romantic evening with him, especially since he hadn't indicated it was a date. She just hoped it was.

And they were posing as siblings. The dejected sigh that escaped her lips didn't go unnoticed by Sasuke, as he directed a questioning glance at her.

Blushing, Hinata quickly shook her head. Sasuke looked even more intrigued, but thankfully a server arrived at their table and that was that.

Hinata resisted the urge to giggle when Sasuke solemnly ordered rice and seasoned tomatoes. The food wasn't even in the menu.

The thoroughly bemused expression on the face of their server made her lose the battle and a laugh bubbled forth from her lips.

He shot her a blank look. "What?"

"I didn't know you liked t-tomatoes," she said.

"You didn't ask."

"W-Well, now that I know, I'd start m-making them f-for you."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her. "Please don't."

The way he had said it rankled somehow. She face-faulted, "I-It won't be th-that bad."

"So you say. But I'd rather not risk it," he said dryly. "I don't want to have unpleasant memories of my favorite dish."

Hinata pouted. "I-I know I'm not th-that good but it's j-just tomato and r-rice…" How hard could it be?

"The onigiri the other night begged to differ."

She was really starting to take offense but it wasn't until she saw the smirk and the glint in his eyes that Hinata realized he was teasing her.

Sasuke was teasing. The thought had a surreal quality to it. Hinata gaped at him.

"What?" This time, he sounded annoyed, probably fed up with all the _undeserved_ attention.

She smiled guiltily. "It's n-nothing."

It didn't seem like he believed her but thankfully, the food arrived. They ate without really talking to each other. When Sasuke finished the last of his tomato, she couldn't help but ask why he liked such a simple dish.

"They're healthy." He said as if it was so obvious he found it strange she needed to ask.

It was strange. She could think of other foods as healthy, if not healthier, and tastier at the top of her head. Hinata rather thought that he liked rice and tomato because it was simple to cook, among other things, but refrained from commenting.

But Neji always told her that she was a terrible at poker. Her face was too open and showed her emotions.

Sasuke probably saw what her cousin always saw on the rare occasion that she tried to play cards with him because he suddenly looked annoyed again.

"Whatever." He grumbled, leaving ryo to cover their bill and standing up.

Hinata hurried to catch up with him and managed to grab the edge of his sleeve outside of the diner.

"S-Sasuke…" she started to say.

"You better not start apologizing."

Hinata stopped. Right, he had told her to stop apologizing too much. "I…I like chocolate drinks because they're sweet," she said lamely.

Sasuke turned around, amusement in his eyes. "A random statement, if I ever heard one."

She felt her cheeks heat up and she tried to hide it by looking down at her sandals. _Sorry__…_

He patted her head. Awkwardly.

"Listen, the festival's in a few days," Hinata looked up at the uncertain inflection in his tone, "Nii mentioned that it's tradition for women to attend wearing a kimono and…"

_Oh._

"…I know you don't have one so we could get one now."

So that was the reason. Somehow, the part of her that longed for Sasuke to return her feelings felt disappointment that he hadn't taken her out to dinner just because he wanted to.

Hinata smiled at him and nodded, accepting his offer. He motioned for her to follow him and together, they walked towards the shopping district.

Yes, she was a bit disappointed. But the larger part of her, the one who loved and expected nothing else in return, was happy to just be able to spend this evening with him. It didn't matter where, just that she was with him.

It was enough.

.

.

.

**To Be Continued.**

* * *

**A/N:**

Hei Gaiiiz! I finally got off my lazy bum and updated this story. All your encouragements kept me going. For a moment there, I had half the mind to just chuck this story but I figured, what the heck, I'm done with the draft anyway, might as well finish it!

So I have two pieces of news to you peepz, the good and the bad (uh-oh…). The good news is, this story would now get steady updates, once a month sounds about right. The bad news is, I'm writing it from the draft I made. How is that bad news? Well, it's an old, **OLD**, draft, meaning there would be a lot of inconsistencies to how I wrote then, to how I write now. And it all boils down to quality, I guess. At this point, I don't want to nitpick the minutiae of the story and produce an update a year later. I'm just going to write what I have already made and be done with it. Seriously, this story is like a sticky note on my proverbial fridge that keeps nagging at me.

Anyway, I finally got to finish this because of a review I received. Something about it tugged at my heartstrings and echoed my sentiments whenever I read unfinished stories I really liked. You reviewers contribute more to an author's morale more than you think :)

Thanks for reading!


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